The Pain We Share
by DarqueDeath4444
Summary: Ever since Sasori could remember, there were cuts and bruises on his body. In a world where Soulmates exist and any injury or pain was shared between the two, he had grown up curious, then fearful, of what exactly his Soulmate was experiencing. Then one day he meets a broken pink haired girl when the Akatsuki takes down one of Orochimaru's bases and he slowly finds out. SoulmatesAU
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter ONE**_

It was a wracking sort of pain that made Akasuna no Sasori stiffen. The action caused the tower of cards he had been building to topple over and Deidara, his partner, grinned at him in momentary triumph before he recognized the look on his face. The blond dropped his own deck and hurried around the table to his side.

"You okay, Danna?" He asked, and the clear worry in the teen's eyes filled Sasori with a familiar bitterness.

"I'm fine," he snapped. He lashed out to push the blond away, but the second wave of pain made him lose his balance and he fell back into his seat.

Deidara scoffed. "You clearly aren't fine, un," he said.

Sasori closed his eyes and paced an arm over his face. "Don't ask, then," he groaned out.

He could not see, but he felt the blond take a seat next to him. "Want some water?" He asked, then correctly took the silence to be a yes. He reached over the table towards his own cup. "Will you be fine for tomorrow?" He asked. "If we tell Pein now-"

Sasori bolted back up, glaring at his partner. "Don't you dare!" He seethed. He snatched the cup offered towards him and had to hold back the urge to empty it over Deidara's head. Instead, he chugged it.

Deidara raised his hands in mock surrender. "I won't, Danna," he said. "But you know he wouldn't take you off the offensive team if you insist." He glanced at something over his shoulder. "And also, I think it might be a little late, un."

Sasori followed the bond's line of gaze and rolled his eyes when he was just in time to see Hoshigaki Kisame and Hidan too casually look away. Uchiha Itachi, Kisame's partner, was also with them, but the raven was much, much better at it than them and he was already glancing out the window. Sasori, however, did not doubt for a second that all three of them had witnessed his bouts of pain but decided to appreciate the gesture anyway, simply because he was too tired to muster any more annoyance.

After all, most of it was reserved for his Soulmate out there, whoever it was.

"Must suck," Kisame offered sympathetically. The man plopped himself down in an empty spot on the couch.

Sasori rolled his eyes again. "What can I say," he said sarcastically. Then, to emphasize just how fine he was, he raised his hand and called upon the warm feeling within him. The power, known as chakra, answered and he willed it into strings, which he then used to gather the collapsed cards. The blue threads neatly cleaned up the mess and Sasori tossed the pack to Deidara. "At least it won't kill me."

Because it wouldn't, no matter how painful it might get, for the injuries that appeared on his body were not his, the pain not inflicted directly onto him.

Everyone had a Soulmate, but chances of actually finding that Soulmate were very slim. The one hint they received was how any pain one felt, as well as any injuries obtained, were reflected on the other.

He was simply feeling whatever his Soulmate, whoever that may be, was feeling.

"From the way your girl is throwing herself into injury one after another, I'm surprised she isn't dead yet," Hidan said. He wandered past them and vanished into the kitchen.

Some spent lifetimes searching for their Soulmate, but only a lucky few actually got around to meeting them, simply due to the sheer amount of people out there living all over the place. To most, it was merely a tickling thought at the back of their head, where they were aware that there was someone out there, but there were more pressing matters to focus on.

"Might be a guy," someone else said, and Kakuzu, Hidan's partner, appeared at the door moments later. He waved, then followed the silver-haired man into the kitchen.

That was not Sasori's case, though. His case was special because his Soulmate appeared to be very clumsy with two left feet at best, an abuse victim if they were unlucky, and involved in something much more horrific at worse. He had never met anyone who hurt as much as he did through the link, and since the problem lay on his other half, there was not much he could do but endure it.

He could still remember glimpses of his childhood when the same bouts of pain had woken his screaming at night. At first, his parents had been there. He could remember his mother wrapping her arms around his shaking frame and his father whispering words of comfort.

Then one day, his parents had vanished but the wracks continued and suddenly he was alone and everything only felt worse as he tried to shield himself from pain he really had no control over. He had only been four back then, too young to care for himself, and his grandmother had taken him in, where he had grown up ever since.

Sasori scowled and he slowly stretched out his limbs. The pain never lasted like an actual injury and wounds always appeared already scarred over. He checked over himself and noted that somewhere, somehow, it appeared as though his Soulmate had stabbed him or herself in the hand. He scowled, because did they not realize that when very they got hurt, he was heavily affected as well?

He tried not to think of how maybe someone else was causing these injuries, because how was he supposed to know?

Over the years, he had gotten used to the pain. Sometimes they took him by surprise, but as he grew older the daily doses of pain changed to strong bursts of it with periods of peace in between, and if he was careful, he could almost tell when they were coming. He managed to work his life around this, entered a special academy for chakra wielders, and graduated with top marks. He was one of the renowned prodigies of his generation, and it was not long before the Akatsuki, an elite force made up of the best of the best, invited him into their ranks when he was fourteen, an age that had surprised many. Itachi was the only one to have been recruited earlier than him at thirteen.

Said Uchiha glanced at his scarred hand. "I believe you should tell Pein about it anyway," he said quietly. "Just in case they return during the operation, so we know to be prepared."

"Bastard's right," Deidara agreed. "We've been planning this for months; wouldn't want you to trip up at a crucial moment because your Soulmate tripped down the stairs or something."

Sasori scowled because he knew they were right, but that did not make it easier at all. He cursed his Soulmate once again before he begrudgingly nodded. "I'll do that."

* * *

The Elemental Nation had once been five different countries that had come together under an alliance to unite into one state, or that was what Sasori often read in history books. Now, though, it was the most advanced, powerful nation in the area.

While it was still separated into five different areas, named Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth, and Water after the old five nations, they functioned under a single ruling power made up of leaders from the five lands. The Akatsuki had been one of the first organization to be made up of members from different national backgrounds, and what had once been nothing more than a show of unity was now one of the biggest, most trusted security and defense organization known.

Sasori tapped at the power within him and summoned blue strings from his fingertips. They flew around his room, picking up his pouch and stuffing a handful of metal needles, senbon, into it. He flicked his fingers again and the pouch landed neatly in his hand.

Many years ago, mankind had managed to tap into their own lifeforce, and this power, which had been named 'chakra', had long become a necessity in life. There were many uses to it, and those who could wield it and mold it to their commands were simply seen to be superior to those who could not. It could be said that, in a way, one's ability to control it became one value within society.

Sasori himself was considered to be one of the best chakra users out there. His control was considered extraordinary even among those who prided themselves in this aspect, and while most channeled chakra into objects in order to manipulate them, he was one of the few who could summon chakra outside a medium and mold it to his will.

Even without his level of control, though, people found many uses for it. There were those who used it in their everyday lives, for something as simple as strengthening themselves for construction work or using it to enhance their vision for delicate crafts. It was used in hospitals to heal wounds and ease pain, sterilize and operate. A slightly uncommon number blessed with better control than others had unique abilities, ranging from being able to control certain objects infused with chakra from a distance to bending even the elements to their will.

And of course, criminals used it to commit crime and authorities used it to try and catch them.

The Akatsuki had always been small but effective, and as the tales of their successes and prowess spread they soon became known as the official law reinforcing group outside the knights, known as ANBU, and the civilian security force, run by the Uchiha clan. It's members usually worked in pairs, and outside of requested work that usually consisted of rounding up bandits and the likes, they also took on more powerful chakra users that the ANBU could not handle.

Sasori grabbed his cloak and threw it over his shoulder. He glanced around his room one last time before he headed out the door.

At the age of eighteen, Sasori, partner to Deidara, was one of the younger members of the Akatsuki. For the past four years, he had used his powers alongside his fellow members to help with policing their ever growing nation.

Deidara, who was currently the youngest at seventeen, was a relatively new member though, only two years having passed since he was recruited. Sasori clearly remembered his partner before the blond had taken his place, and that thought alone left a trembling in his hands and a bitter taste in his mouth.

Orochimaru had been a member since before Sasori had joined, and the older man had acted like a mentor to him during his first few months. Known infamously as the 'Snake', he had not only been skilled in combat, but in the more research related aspect of investigations as well, and had dedicated a large part of his time outside of work looking into chakra and its relation to the human body.

It had only been a few months into Sasori's work with the Akatsuki when a group of people trafficking children was brought to light. It was Sasori's first ever major job but everything had gone smoothly. They managed to rescue all the children unharmed, and while it was revealed that most of the kidnap victims had been orphans taken from the streets, work had been put into giving them food, shelter, and support, and an orphanage had been set up.

Orochimaru had offered to take over the role of managing the orphanage, and it had taken them too long to realize who his true intentions had been.

The man had been using the children at the orphanage as experiments for what he claimed to be scientific research into chakra. By the time there had been enough evidence to try and take him in, he had been long ready for them. He had already transported out many of his successful experiments to bases he had prepared years in advance. Itachi, who had caught up to him after the man had made his initial escape, had gotten into a messy battle with him and Orochimaru managed to escape with a sliver of his life. He had gone into hiding ever since only to reveal himself a year later as a new nation he called 'Sound'. He ran on organized crime and assassinations, and after months, years, of investigation, they had tracked down a major base of his. The Akatsuki had been given full rights to handling the case, and finally, after years of bubbling anger and planning and thoughts of revenge, they were executing a massive operation to take him down.

Sasori entered the main office of their base to see that only Itachi and Kisame were present. He nodded in greeting then took his usual seat at the table.

"Good morning," Itachi said politely.

The raven had once been heir to one of the biggest clans within the nation. The Uchiha, in fact, ran the entirety of the security organization that prioritized civilian safety. When the Akatsuki had recommended him for their ranks, no one had expected him to accept the position. It had caused a huge rift within the Uchiha clan but Itachi had shaken off all the protests and attempts to stop him. Though they were the same age, Itachi was a year his senior within the Akatsuki. He was an unparalleled user of fire, even among his clansmen who were known for fire manipulation. However, what made him truly stand out was what was known as the Sharingan. Rarely, chakra caused physical mutations to occur. The Uchiha were a clan that had managed to pass down this mutation until it became a family trait. The Sharingan affected the eyes of the Uchiha who had them and allowed them to cast illusions that directly affected their targets through eye contact. Itachi was talent, potential, skill, and birthright wrapped up in a single, deadly package.

Kisame grinned. "Finally, huh?"

The man, one of the oldest among them at age twenty-three, was skilled a swordsman as he was a chakra user. He had once been a part of a group known as the Ten Swordsmen that originated from the Land of Water. While during the warring ages decades ago, the Ten Swordsmen of the Mist had been declared one of the most dangerous groups of warriors, it now only existed in name. Still, those who were a part of it were all considered master swordsmen, and Kisame had been recruited for his ability to mold chakra with his weapons. From what he knew, he was also rather skilled in manipulating water.

Sasori nodded. "I can't wait to get my hands on that stupid snake," he hissed.

Itachi nodded. "I let him get away once," he said. The Uchiha had always blamed himself for Orochimaru's escape, even though everyone knew it had not been his fault. Itachi had been fifteen then. Orochimaru was much older and had years more experience on him and the raven had still managed to push the Snake to the edge. "It will not happen again."

Before the rest of them could say anything, the door was thrown open and Deidara marched in. "Morning," he called, then sat down in his chair next to Sasori. "So, who's ready to kick some scaly snake ass?"

Deidara was once a kid Sasori had put behind bars for causing several explosions in abandoned factories. No one had gotten hurt, though, and everything had changed once it was revealed that the explosions were caused not by bombs, but by the blond's unique ability to cause things he channeled chakra into to explode. The Akatsuki, looking for a member after Orochimaru had betrayed them, had taken him in. Sasori would never admit it, but underneath all the noise and annoyance that came with associating with him, he quite liked Deidara. At the very least, he was very entertaining to watch.

Sasori glanced around the room. The four of them would be the attack force. Kakuzu and Hidan had an emergency job within the capital to take care of, and they could not leave their own base unmanned.

"Zetsu returned from his scouting just before you entered the room," Itachi told them. "And it appears Konan will be offering us support. From what we already do know, Orochimaru is currently not within the Northern Base."

Sasori cursed under his breath. They had all known that this would take a long time. Orochimaru definitely had more than one base, and the possibility of him being in the one they decided to take down first was low.

"Sucks," Deidara muttered, appearing to mirror his thoughts. "It would've been nice to just get rid of him now."

"Still, the Northern base is a major one of the Snake hideouts," Kisame pointed out. "Once we take one, it won't be long before we manage to track the others; Orochimaru can't build bases as fast as we can destroy them."

Deidara grinned. "Ohhh, I like the sound of that."

Sasori nodded once, firmly, in agreement.

* * *

 **Soooooo...Hi.**

 _ **Darque: So, here:**_

 _ **ANBU - general police thing.**_

 _ **Uchiha fam - Civilian protection thing.**_

 _ **Akatsuki - Something like a SWAT team thing?**_

 _ **Also, I like Sasori.**_

 **Raven: Uhhh right. I can see that.**

 _ **Darque: My game loaded.**_

 **Raven: Okay.**

 **Read and Review~**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter TWO**_

The Northern base was located quite a distance from any major nation. Travel consisted of horseback to the closest town before the rest was done by foot as to not alert any guards that might be on the lookout.

"I never knew there was anything here," Deidara muttered. He swatted at a bug flying around his face. "Really, couldn't the Snake have built roads or something?"

"I think that's the point," Sasori said, rolling his eyes. "You know, it's a 'hideout' for a reason."

Deidara scoffed. "I know."

Sasori could feel Itachi and Kisame staring at them from behind with what he knew was probably confusion and amusement as they shamelessly listened in on their conversation but he couldn't bring himself to care. His neck had been throbbing since the morning and he was willing to bet anything that his Soulmate had angered her attacker again.

Konan, the blue-haired only female of the current generation of the Akatsuki, was relatively silent throughout their travel though Sasori could see amusement dancing in her orange eyes whenever he looked at her. Konan was childhood friends of Yahiko and Nagato, the pair that acted as the current leaders of their group. The three of them had grown up in Rain, one of the poorest parts of the Elemental Nation, and it had been sheer luck that they had been found by a man called Jiraiya, who had great influence over the government. He had seen the talent and potential the three had with their chakra and had brought them back with him to Fire, where they had been given proper training to use it.

Soon, Itachi pointed at something in the distance. "We will stop there for the night," he said. "Tomorrow, at dawn, we will depart on foot towards Orochimaru's base."

The village was clearly wary of outsiders but, despite the lack of their signature uniform, they were let in rather easily. Sasori noticed the way parents ushered children into houses and the subtle glances sent their way when people thought they weren't looking and decided that Orochimaru had perhaps run out of orphan children to experiment on, and the small villages surrounding Sound had become victims of kidnappings.

The Akatsuki had sent ahead men to prepare for this operation and by the time they arrived a temporary base had been set up. It had been stocked up with food and other resources, as well as weapons. From here, Konan would be supporting them with the aid of Zetsu.

As the last of them stepped through the entrance, said man let himself be seen. He materialized in a chair and waved.

Even from his appearance alone, which was one of the most extreme cases of chakra mutation Sasori had ever seen, one could tell Zetsu had a unique type of chakra. The man, two years older than him, could use chakra to camouflage his appearance as well as his chakra signature. Sasori had no idea how he did it, but he acted as their main source of information obtained through spying and infiltration.

The five of them made quick or of settling in, and by sunset, they had once again gathered around a table for final preparations and plan checks.

"The aim of this operation is to track down Orochimaru and shut down any remaining experiments he may be conducting," Konan began. "We will also be looking to rescue any victims as well as rounding up anyone who may be working or him. For tomorrow's operation, our main aim is to find information on the rest of Orochimaru's bases. Your job is to incapacitate any guards he may have around, as well as to destroy the security system. Any ordinary scientists and workers, as well as experiments and other victims, will be rounded up by the rest of our men once you are able to clear the path."

"Are we hoping to keep the fall of this base from Orochimaru?" Itachi asked.

Konan narrowed her eyes. "Seeing how major of a hideout this particular one is for the Snake, it's probably unlikely he won't know or long. Even if we manage to stop all communication out from the base and capture all the men without a single one escaping, he'll probably find out sooner or later."

"He probably knows we're coming sooner or later," Kisame pointed out. "It'd be stupid to assume he doesn't have any countermeasures put in place."

Chakra was a power, a privilege, and those who used it against those who couldn't wield it was already aware of the unfair advantage they had; they couldn't expect people like that to go down quietly. This was especially the case with people who had enough courage to turn it against the law, for they most likely knew how to use it to fight.

Sasori brought chakra to his hands and a blue glow lit up the tips of his fingers. Unlike the majority of the Akatsuki, Sasori had no unique ability. His forte was sheer, unrivaled control which allowed him to do things with his chakra that others could not, but there was no unique characteristic to his powers or anything of the sort.

"Doesn't matter," he said, for the first time since the meeting had begun. "We just have to catch him."

* * *

Dawn could not come fast enough for Sasori as he lay on his sleeping bag, waiting for sleep to take him.

He had never been one for prayer, but he hoped that for once in their life, his Soulmate would stay out of trouble. He knew that, from the sheer extent of her injuries, his Soulmate was probably not at fault. Still, the world was vast and there were a countless number of people out there; it was not as though he could go out looking for this mystery figure and save them from whatever situation they were in. That left him feeling bitter that out of everyone, he was the one that had to deal with being connected to them.

He sighed and rolled over. The marks on his neck were long gone and there was nothing even suggesting that there were marks to begin with, but he knew that somewhere out there his Soulmate was probably still suffering from the bruises.

He wondered, not for the first time, how his Soulmate felt, what they thought, when he got injuries of his own. Did they even know he existed? Or did they not even realize his markings among the sea of their own?

* * *

When Sasori woke up to no throbbing pain, he almost smiled. Maybe his Soulmate was one of their off days. He had already packed the previous night and he was soon out of his room.

Expectedly, he was the first to arrive in the meeting room, but he did not have to wait very long. Deidara, Itachi, Kisame, and Konan all arrived soon after. Curt greetings were exchanged, an air of tenseness making it awkward to start any friendly banter that might have surfaced on any other day.

The Akatsuki was family. Sasori would never admit it, not if he could help it, but the Akatsuki was a home for him. Before becoming part of it, he had nothing. His parents were missing and sometimes it felt as though his grandmother had taken him in only because he had nowhere else to go.

The Akatsuki was a gathering of those like him, skilled but not knowing what to do with their lives. They had given him a purpose, a reason to live, and it had also given him companions, those who understood him because they were the same. When Orochimaru had revealed himself to be a traitor, the Akatsuki had almost taken the fall. After all, how was anyone supposed to trust an organization that had supposedly given birth to one of the most well known and feared criminals of their generation? In the end, they had been fine. Plenty of people who had been helped by them in the past had supported them, and people like Jiraiya, who had a high social standing within the nation, had taken their side.

Konan clapped her hands together, successfully catching their attention. "You will depart at noon," she said. "I will support as much as I can from here, but on-field decisions will be left up to you."

Sasori glanced out the window; The sun had just fully revealed itself from the horizon. If they kept their travels to a slow pace to not waste any unnecessary energy they would arrive just as the sun was setting.

"Zetsu will act as a communication line between us," Konan continued. She held up her hand to reveal small pieces of paper floating around her fingertips. "These will allow me to track chakra," she explained. "Once in the base, you can use these to locate any people."

Itachi accepted the chakra infused sheets and slipped them into his pouch. "Understood."

Konan nodded. "I suggest you get going," she said. "Remember, this is thought to be a long-term operation, and taking down the Northern hideout is one step among many. There is no need to put yourselves in necessary risk." She paused, and Sasori met her gaze when she turned towards him. "If something is wrong, make sure to tell someone."

Sasori held back the urge to scoff and instead nodded because he did not feel like dealing with another scolding. "I will."

Konan narrowed her eyes at him, perhaps not quite believing him, but she nodded nonetheless. "Pein expects a full report, both verbal and written, once we return," she said. "I wish you the best of luck."

Deidara grinned. "We don't need luck," he said mockingly, but frankly Sasori agreed.

* * *

Itachi's illusion over them made approaching the Northern base, undetected, rather easy. There was a rather impressive ward surrounding the main facility itself, though, and one glance shared between the four of them alerted them all that it would be impossible to sneak past without triggering it. Kisame cut through the chakra wall with his sword and Itachi released Konan's paper the moment they passed through the dissipating wards.

From there, there was no need to hide. Itachi cast a huge illusion around the structure to deal with anyone who managed to sneak out past them. Zetsu had already alerted them of the lack of enemy presence outside the hideout and in seconds Deidara had already blown up what was probably the main entrance to the hideout.

They were immediately met with the sound of blaring alarms and Sasori could hear rapid footsteps echoing throughout the dark corridors.

"Let's try not to destroy any data we need to collect," Kisame said with a chuckle, and Sasori automatically turned to give Deidara a pointed look.

The blond rolled his eyes and raised his hands to show that they were empty and free of explosives. "Right."

A set of footsteps steadily grew louder and in the next second, a group of armed men burst out from one of the doors. Itachi blinked, eyes glaring red, and the men froze before they slumped onto the ground.

Deidara huffed. "Is this whole thing just gonna be you showing off your fancy eyeballs?" He asked.

The edges of Itachi's lips curled a little in amusement. "Perhaps."

Kisame grinned and shifted his sword on his shoulder. "So, data is labs and experiment victims in cages?" He asked. "Sounds about right?"

Sasori narrowed his eyes and glanced around. He knew many cases where the environment and the atmosphere affected chakra based experiments. "This base appears vertically tall as it is horizontally wide," he said. "I'd assume any important data, if there is anything here, to be located further down."

"Guarded by Orochimaru's pets," Deidara added.

"We will not attack any experiments unless attacked first, and we will not kill any as long we can afford not to," Itachi said. "Perhaps proper check and tests and revert any damage done by Orochimaru, and we must not forget that most of them were likely unlucky victims kidnapped from their villages or orphans with no one to notice their disappearance."

Deidara's grin died a little at that, and he nodded firmly. "Of course, un."

Sasori watched the blond cup his hands and reveal a handful of small, clay birds. He sent a surge of chakra through them and Sasori watched the birds slowly being to shift, and then flap their wings. "These don't contain explosives," Deidara said. "And their insides are hollow, so they aren't made using a lot of clay. I can make them burst using chakra, and inside is a bit of that knockout gas you shared with me the other day."

"Guess we're going to be seeing more than Itachi's eyeballs," Kisame said, and then gestured with his thumb towards where Orochimaru's men had come from. "I bet there are more that way." Itachi turned towards Konan's confetti, which had been floating around the team since he had first released them, and almost as though they heard his thoughts they flew through the door.

Deidara grinned back. He flung his birds into the air and they caught a nonexisting wind with clay wings. They streaked after Konan's paper and moments later they heard a small explosion, followed by shouts, then harsh sounds of many heavy things hitting the ground, then silence.

"I thought they didn't contain explosives," Sasori muttered, eying the smoke seeping from the doorway.

Deidara shrugged. "They didn't," he said, and at the pointed look he received he grinned. "Just some extra chakra to make sure they exploded _without_ explosives."

Sasori rolled his eyes and Itachi shook his head in exasperation. Kisame merely chuckled, then swung his sword down, knocking the doors off their hinges and flinging them to the side. "Okay cleanup crew," he said. "Let's sweep the place."

* * *

Once they actually got to it, they were quick to remove any of Orochimaru's men still up and about. Itachi gave notice whenever someone triggered his illusion outside the base and from the way the Uchiha did not raise any alarm, Sasori assumed none had managed to shake it off. That didn't surprise him in the least; Itachi was not a prodigy for nothing.

Sasori made marks over the map Zetsu had drawn out prior to the operation, making corrections as well as adding in any previously unknown rooms. He noted down locations where data and information had been found, as well as places where the Snake's experiment victims were stashed. They did not encounter many of them, most of them locked up securely and too drugged up to really notice anything. The few that were roaming free were quickly taken out by Itachi, who was careful that they were properly nocked out but completely unharmed.

"That's most of this floor," Deidara said and pointed towards another set of stairs leading further down. They had already roamed through three of the five known floors. Sasori added a few lines on his map to indicate where they had found extra rooms, empty unused labs, before he nodded to show that he was ready to move on.

Suddenly, a burning pain erupted from his hands. His vision actually blurred from the pain and Deidara let out a cry when he slumped against the blond. "Danna!"

Sasori gritted his teeth. Though connected, the pain from injuries usually lasted an instant. For the wound to continue hurting meant that the injury was being continuously pressured, as though whoever had attacked Soulmate had left the knife within the injury. That had never happened before.

At such an inconvenient time too.

He carefully shifted his fingers, the hand his Soulmate had been stabbed through struggling to follow his orders. Another burst of pain soon came, stemming from his shoulder. Deidara carefully lowered him to the ground. Kisame and Itachi crowded around, an eye on him and an eye on their surroundings.

"This is so unlucky, un," Deidara said softly.

"When I get my hands on this Soulmate of mine," Sasori seethed through his pain, clutching at his hands. "I will make them regret even getting a paper cut."

He didn't even consider how he would be taking his words all back, every complaint, every threat and insult, everything, just later that day.

* * *

 **Update my friends~**

 _ **Darque: MORE TO COME I PROMISE.**_

 **Raven: I SEE. WHY YOU SO EXCITED?**

 _ **Darque: BECAUSE THIS IS FUNNNNN.**_

 **Raven: I SEE.**

 _ **Darque: YAS. SEND ME COOKIES FRIENDS, I LOVE COOKIES.**_

 **Raven: Right...**

 **Read and Review~**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter THREE**_

"Kill it."

 _No-_

"Kill it, that is an order."

 _No, no-_

"Kill it."

 _No_ _, because she was not a murderer, she-_

"I will give you until I count down from five,"

 _Her hands were shaking and the thing before her, small and also shaking, was screaming-_

"Five,"

 _She didn't want to. She knew what pain felt like, and she wouldn't wish it on anyone else-_

"Four,"

 _But if she didn't, he would hurt her, hurt them, just like he had yesterday, and the day before, and every single day before that-_

"Three,"

 _And she didn't want to hurt anymore-_

"Two,"

 _Her body surged with power, the power to protect them in the only way she knew-_

"One,"

 _She wondered why, despite the coldness of her actions, the blood of the consequences were warm to touch-_

"Good job."

 _With each drop of crimson spilled, she was protecting them_.

* * *

They decided that Sasori, in his current state, would be safer with the team than if he and Deidara were to try and make their way back out of the base. Fortunately, there really was not a lot of resistance from Orochimaru's side. Most of the men they came across were all unskilled, their expertise lying in the research side of things, and the guards they did come across were nothing against Itachi and Kisame. The Uchiha cast illusions over them as they swept past, keeping them under until reinforcements came to take them in.

Soon, Konan's paper slowed their rapid movement, alerting them that the current floor was clear and that there was one last floor to check before they could deem the hideout safe. Deidara supported Sasori as they continued their slow trek through the dark corridors. They stopped at the foot of the stairs that led to the lowest floor of the hideout. Even from here, he could already tell that there was something different, wrong, with their final destination.

Sasori narrowed his eyes and he flexed his fingers, knowing that there was a possibility that they would be attacked, not only by Orochimaru's men lying in wait but also from experiments who had long lost their human conscious and sanity. He had come across plenty over the years, first when they had entered Orochimaru's office in the orphanages years ago to find the Snake long gone. They were not necessarily strong, but there were often many in a group. They also appeared to feel close to no pain and continued to attack even when missing whole limbs.

He cursed under his breath as his wounds continued to throb. He ignored Deidara's worried glance, though, as they descended.

The bottom of the stairs immediately opened up into a wide corridor, with cages on either side. The metal bars appeared very secure, and while many of the creatures within them reached out towards them with hooked hands and let out guttural cries as they passed, none of them appeared to be able to get out.

This floor was definitely where Orochimaru kept the most dangerous of his experiments.

Finally, they reached the end of the hallway where a single, securely bolted door sat before them. Itachi made quick work of the door, which turned out was not as hard to open as it had first appeared, and cautiously opened the door and stepped through, Kisame a step behind him.

Sasori then heard a sharp intake of breath from Itachi and frowned. For something to have brought a verbal reaction from the Uchiha, it had to be big. Deidara shifted his weight on his shoulder before they followed the pair into the dimly lit room.

He froze. If Deidara hadn't been holding him up, he was sure he would have collapsed.

Before them, on the floor of what could only be called a dungeon, sat a young, pink haired girl. Her face was covered by her hair but even from a distance, he could tell that her entire body was limp. Her head was hanging and did not move even when their footsteps made sounds against the stone floor. Thick black lines marked her pale skin.

"She looks much more pleasant than anything else we've encountered in this hellhole," Kisame said softly. "You think she's Orochimaru's?"

"Is she dead?" Deidara asked.

Her wrists were chained up to the ceiling and Sasori could see the knife pinning her hands together against the stone wall. Something bubbled within him, and Sasori felt his own hands throbbing like a painful reminder.

He was knocked out of his stupor when Itachi rushed forward. "She is bleeding," he said, and Sasori realized with a start that the dark pool surrounding her was indeed blood. The whole area was filled with the stench of blood and death that he hadn't given it a second thought.

Kisame hurried to his partner's side. "Is she alive?"

Itachi nodded, hands flying to the girl's hands. "She is."

Kisame pulled out a roll of bandages from their first aid kit. Its contents were nowhere near good enough to take care of the girl's injuries, but it would have to do until someone with more knowledge in the area arrived or they got her to someplace proper equipped to help her.

Itachi gently eased the knives out from her hands and instantly began trying to stop the blood flow. Sasori simply watched, feeling the pain in his hands instantly dying away.

 _No._

Kisame inspected the chains holding the girl up, then drew his sword. Itachi nodded, and the older man swung his weapon, slicing the metal in half. The Uchiha gently caught the girl, who showed no signs of waking, and gently turned her around to reveal a back full of fresh, bleeding injuries.

Deidara winced. "Explains all the blood," he said. "The black lines are probably chakra mutation."

 _No._

Itachi tore the girl's ruined clothes from her thin frame and cleaned the wounds the best he could in their current situation before he pulled out an extra cloak and covered her with it. Kisame propped his sword over his shoulder, ready to protect them, and the Uchiha rose to his feet with the pinkette in his arms.

 _No, no no_ nonononono _._

"I think we've got everything we need from here," Kisame said. "Should we head back up?"

Itachi nodded. "She needs medical attention," he added.

His wounds no longer hurt, and when he glanced at his hands they had scarred over like injuries from weeks ago. "Deidara?" He called softly.

The blond, who had been preparing to support him on their trip back towards the stairs, turned towards him. "Hm? You okay Danna? Do you want to rest or something?"

Itachi and Kisame both stopped to glance back at them as well.

Sasori slowly shook his head. "I-"

His throat felt dry and his voice sounded as though he had not used it in years. He swallowed, wincing at the dry feeling in his throat, and tried again.

"I think that girl is my Soulmate."

* * *

The four of them confirmed the arrival of the rest of their men. Itachi directed the leaders of the rest of the groups to sections of the base and gave them rundowns of what could be found where before they retreated back to the village where Konan and Zetsu were waiting.

It was not even questioned when the Uchiha continued to carry the unconscious pink haired girl back with them, and while they received curious looks from many of their subordinates, no one asked any questions.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Sasori was quiet. The scars on his hands no longer hurt, and there was nothing that suggested they had hurt in the first place. The girl, his soulmate, lying in Itachi's arms gave no indication of hurting either, though that may have had something to do with the fact that she was no longer chained up in Orochimaru's dungeons.

Besides, if he wasn't hurting, she shouldn't be hurting. That was one of the things their bond told them after all.

Every once in a while he found his eyes drifting over towards the unconscious pinkette, because was she supposed to be so thin? Sasori knew, having experienced them himself, that the injuries the girl had received over the years were not anything to laugh about, and his was a momentary pain in comparison. From the way she had endured it all, he had thought that she would be taller, maybe, and stronger looking, not this….this pink haired doll-like creature with hands half the size of his own and a waist so think he could probably wrap his hands around it.

At some point, Deidara released him to move on his own but Sasori barely noticed. His pain was long gone, but he was sure the stab wounds on the girl's hands were still hurting.

When they arrived, Konan did not appear awfully surprised to see the girl and Sasori guessed that Zetsu had already informed her of the extra person with them, though it was likely neither of them knew who exactly she was. Sasori was glad no one asked any questions for now.

The woman simply ordered Itachi to set up a few illusions around one of the spare rooms they had available and put the girl there for the time being; Kakuzu and Hidan were finished off their own job and were going to join them later that day and the former could patch her up then.

Kakuzu, who was the same age as Kisame at twenty-three, was one of the people Sasori talked the least to. They were on friendly terms, but both of them liked silence over conversation and they tended to sit in the same room reading or working rather than talking. He and Hidan were known as the 'Zombie pair' because of the way both of them were technically unkillable due to their chakra natures. Kakuzu had five different natural chakra storages within his body to the average person's one. While it was possible to manually store chakra in a part of the body, which was a difficult, delicate and time-consuming process in its own right, being born with more than one was a very rare case. These five storages all worked together whenever Kakuzu was injured to stitch the wound back together much faster than a normal person could.

Hidan, the other half of the Zombi pair, was a case of near immortality Sasori could not quite explain. Unlike Kakuzu, who brought himself together to stay alive, Hidan's chakra appeared to be able to seal wounds and injuries with amazing accuracy and speed, allowing each decapitated part to stay alive without the aid of the heart or the brain or a very long time until someone stitched him back together again. Sasori had been present during one of those operations, and he was frankly okay with not knowing how it worked because it had been very disturbing to watch. Not to mention the silverette was loud. He stayed away from Hidan if he could help it.

The two of them arrived at the village a few hours later. Sasori did not say a word to them about the situation, and the rest of them present seemed to take that as a sign that they should stay silent as well. Sasori simply wanted to be left with his thoughts, and while Kakuzu was capable of giving him the silence he wanted he was sure Hidan was not.

Kakuzu did not question anything when Konan pointed out the room the girl was being kept in. Despite that, Hidan asked enough questions to drive Sasori up the wall of insanity. Deidara seemed to catch onto his annoyance, for he loudly called Hidan annoying, effectively cutting off the older man. Hidan paused for a split second, glancing over at Sasori as though he finally realized how he was not confirming Deidara's claims like he usually would, before he glared at the blond and rained a barrage of insults onto him, questions supposedly forgotten.

Soon, Kakuzu exited from the girl's temporary room. "I've stitched up her wounds," he said. "Though I actually think she would have been fine either way."

"What do you mean, un?" Deidara asked.

Kakuzu shrugged and plopped himself down on an open chair. "It might be the results of Orochimaru's experiments, or maybe it's her chakra nature, but it appears her body seems to have natural healing powers."

That thought fills Sasori with a sense of relief because if she healed fast she probably didn't feel the pain for long, didn't hurt-

But wait, why did he care?

He felt Deidara's eyes on him again and forced himself to clear his face of emotions.

"Who is she anyway?" Hidan asked, a little quieter than earlier. Konan glanced over at Itachi, then at Sasori, probably expecting the more responsible of the team to explain. The Uchiha glanced over at him too, and soon Sasori could tell everyone was looking at him.

"She-" Sasori hesitated, "we found her in Orochimaru's base, and I think...I believe she is my soulmate."

Silence met his revelation before Hidan exploded. "WHAT?"

Konan was a lot more composed. "Why do you say so?"

Sasori held up his hands, where the knife marks had scarred over. "For one, I got these during the operation. The pain tends to fade after the initial burst unless the injury is continuously stimulated being wounded. That usually never happens with us, but these continued to hurt long after. We found the girl chained up, with her hands pinned up with a knife. That explains why my marks continued to hurt, and also explains why they scarred over moments after Itachi pulled out the knife." He thought over his next words before he continued. "Also, all the injuries and pain will be explained if she were one of Orochimaru's….pets. She was bleeding her life out when we found her; who knows what she was put through?" He hesitated with his final reason, simply because he had never been one to rely on superstitions. "That, and I have a feeling."

"You feel that she is your soulmate?" Hidan asked in disbelief.

Sasori scowled. "Yes."

Hidan went uncharacteristically quiet at his strong reply and Sasori resisted the urge to sigh, because how was he supposed to explain a gut feeling he himself didn't even understand?

Konan seemed to consider his words for a while before she nodded. "Okay. I think your reasons are valid," she began. "It will be beneficial to confirm at a later date, but I think it is reasonable to assume that you two do share the soulmate bond."

Sasori felt himself relax.

"The girl will be brought back to base," Konan continued. "Of course we will have to keep an eye on her, seeing as she appears to have been one of Orochimaru's experiments, but from what you have told me it looks as though she was not a willing follower. I'm sure we can find something on the files we recovered from the Northern hideout."

They were then dismissed for the night. Sasori raided the food storage before he retreated to his room, mind spinning and all the long gone scars he remembered tingling.

* * *

Later that day Sasori found himself sitting on a chair next to the girl's bed, the one Kakuzu had probably used during the healing process. Return back to the Akatsuki headquarters had been set to the following morning, leaving them with the night to rest up. He had felt he would not be able to sleep at all, though, with everything that had happened, and Itachi had quietly suggested he go sit with the girl for a while and sort out his thoughts.

The girl looked much better than when he had first seen her. The blood had been cleaned up and all the grime and dirt had been scrubbed off of her body. The black markings on her skin had vanished and Sasori wondered if it was a part of some chakra related ability. She still looked skinny and frail but considering her past residence that was reasonable.

All in all, she did not look like someone who had suffered from heavy injuries over the years.

Sasori thought back to Kakuzu's words as he made himself comfortable.

Perhaps her regeneration abilities had led to Orochimaru's interest in her? If she healed fast, that meant more experiments could be conducted. Sasori then thought back to his promise of retaliation and inwardly winced.

This girl had been suffering in one of the worst possible places, at the hands of Orochimaru. Her wrist looked like it would snap if he so much as gripped it tightly, and a dark part of his mind reminded him that it would probably heal just as fast.

He glanced up at the girl's face. Since he had entered she hadn't so much as fluttered an eyelash, though the soft sounds of her breathing and the steady rise and fall of her chest clearly indicated that she was alive. He wondered what color her eyes were.

"You made my life a mess," he told her. "I'd start hurting out of the blue, at the most random times, and I had no way to stop it." He glanced at the girl's hands, where scars identical to his own marred her skin. "Though if you were with the snake I guess you didn't have much of a choice either."

He slowly reached out and ran a finger over the pale skin of her arm. If he dug his nails into her flesh, he would feel the pain as well. He would never be able to harm his Soulmate without suffering the same consequences. No matter what, there was someone out there who understood one's pain and suffering. He wondered if that was the twisted sort of relationship that drew people into the whole concept.

He felt something twitch beneath his fingers and slowly looked up to see the greenest pair of eyes he had ever seen. It took him a second to gauge that the girl was awake. It took him another to notice she was slowly reaching for him.

It took him one more to realize the snap that was his wrist breaking under the girl's dainty fingers and that she was bolting for the door

* * *

 _Or that was what she told her self, again and again, just like she had yesterday, and the day before, and every single day before that, as, with each murder, she killed a little of herself._

 _At least until one day, there was nothing left to kill._

* * *

 **So...update~**

 ** _Darque: I'm sad because I was trying to play DST and I kept lagging_.**

 **Raven: It's a sign that you should stop playing games.**

 _ **Darque: It was winter and I was stuck near a fire for so many days.**_

 **Raven: Are you even listening?**

 _ **Darque: Sigh, maybe next time.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: (Thank you for the cookies)**_

 **Read and Review~**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter FOUR**_

The moment the girl stepped foot outside the room, Sasori knew Itachi would notice. The Uchiha had put security measures around the room to ensure the girl did not run but he didn't think there was anything to stop the pinkette from hurting anyone inside the room. After all, he doubted anyone had expected her to wake up so soon after rescue.

There were rapid footsteps and at one point, there was a guttural snarl that probably belonged to the girl followed by a couple of loud sounds of things breaking. The ground shook. All the while, Sasori glanced numbly down at his broken wrist, because had his Soulmate really snapped his limb?

Soon after, there was a single sound of someone hitting the ground and Itachi appeared at the doorway.

"Are you okay?"

Sasori glanced up and raised his injured arm. "Apart from this, yes."

Itachi approached him and inspected it. "It looks like a clean break," he said.

"She just snapped it with her hand," Sasori told him. "Then ran."

Itachi glanced over his shoulder, to where Kisame was carrying the once again unconscious girl in his arms. "She is now under my illusion," he said. "I did not want to cast anything directly onto her, just in case Orochimaru did something to her mind, but I did not have a choice lest she bring the place down. It is nothing too complex and hopefully, she will stay under until we arrive back at base tomorrow."

"What do you mean 'bring the place down'?" Sasori asked. He ran his fingers over his wrist and noted that indeed, it was a clean break.

Itachi gesture towards the door. "Check it out yourself," he said.

Kisame was grinning as he placed the girl back onto the bed. "Careful, Sasori-san," he laughed. "Your girl is one strong tiny thing."

Curious, Sasori exited the room and looked down the corridor. Or, what would have been the corridor. He stared at the huge gaping hole in the stone structure, then at the trail of destruction that led towards the exit before abruptly stopping right outside what he recalled was Kakuzu's room. That must have been where Itachi caught her.

"She tossed Hidan right through the wall, un," Deidara said, jogging over. "I was out there with the bastard when she just burst out of the room. She grabbed Hidan by the face just as she ran past and hurled him through the wall."

"I'd have loved to see that," Kakuzu called. "Where is he now?"

Deidara shrugged and gestured towards the pile of debris. "Underneath the mess?"

Konan appeared soon after, Zetsu right behind her. "I sent notice back to base regarding our….situation," she said. "Proper space for containment will be set up for our return."

"Something that blocks chakra," Itachi suggested. "I assume she healed faster than expected due to her chakra, and that this monster strength is also chakra based."

Konan nodded. "Keep her in your illusion until we return," she ordered. "And the rest of you, try to get some rest."

Konan glanced his way as she said this and Sasori simply sighed. "And what do we do about this?" He asked bitterly, lifting his arm. "It hurts."

Itachi did an Uchiha equivalent to an eye roll, which was a small twitch of his facial features. "Yes," he said with mocking patience, "it's broken."

Sasori actually rolled his eyes. He had a feeling nothing had really settled with him yet. Perhaps tomorrow, his mind would be clear.

* * *

Sasori woke up as he had every morning for the past several years, body tense and the smallest bit afraid of the pain that might be ringing in his bones.

There was nothing, though, and he reminded himself that unless the girl had somehow rolled off the bed and hit the floor, there was no way he would be hurting. He sat up, testing his limbs anyways, and faintly smiled when nothing hurt.

He was the first at the table and had just thrown himself something to eat from the foods he had found lying around when Itachi and Kisame joined him.

"Good morning," Itachi said softly, and Sasori nodded, swallowing his mouthful before he returned the greeting.

"Good morning."

"Early as always, Sasori-san," Kisame grinned. The blue man eyed his plate.

Sasori rolled his eyes. "Who knows if there will be any food left if I let any of you eat before me."

Kisame laughed at that before he vanished into the kitchen. "A sandwich, Itachi-san?"

Itachi took a seat next to Sasori and nodded, even if Kisame could not see. "Yes, please." He then turned towards him. "Your girl is still asleep," he said. "Hopefully, the illusion will allow her to rest."

Sasori swallowed again. "What is it with 'my girl'?"

Itachi chuckled. "Soulmates are bound by a physical bond," he said, "and when they meet, as rare as it is, they develop an emotional bond as well. Perhaps it is one born of the knowledge that no matter what, that someone will know your pain, or perhaps it is much more complex, just like how we share pain between two bodies. Regardless, you, one of the most rational people I know, claimed the girl to be your Soulmate based on a feeling."

Sasori took his time chewing. Itachi watched him for a while. "In other words, it is almost impossible for Soulmates to return to past lives and relationships after meeting."

"Even if one half of the bond is a psycho Orochimaru girl with pink hair and a tendency to break bones?"

Itachi remains silent, merely watching him, and Sasori sighed. "I know," he said softly. "I'm not being fair."

"I do not know about fair," Itachi began, "but I believe I can say with confidence that the girl did not choose her situation of free will." Kisame stepped out of the kitchen with a plate in both hands. The Uchiha took the one held out to him and nodded in gratitude. Sasori watched him take a bite as Kisame sat down next to him.

"If Deidara ever made me a sandwich, I'd be too suspicious to eat it."

Kisame snorted.

"No, really," Sasori said. "He might sneak a bomb inside you, then later when you fight or things don't go his way he'll use it to threaten you."

"I highly doubt he can hold onto it for so long," Kisame said. "He'll make it explode on the spot."

Deidara chose that moment to make an appearance. "Who'll make what explode?"

Kisame burst out laughing and Itachi had a rare smile on his face. Sasori rolled his eyes. "We were just discussing how your brain will explode if you think too much."

Deidara's protest was drowned out by a flurry of curses that suddenly erupted from behind the closed door. It was thrown open and Kakuzu stepped through. Sasori caught a glimpse of Hidan behind him just before he slammed it shut.

Kakuzu ignored Hidan's enraged cry as he took his seat.

"So what's wrong with him?" Deidara asked, appearing to have forgotten about the insults against him.

Hidan had been dug out from under the rubble after the girl had been settled into her room and Itachi had once again secured the perimeters. Sasori had half expected him to crawl his own way out but when they found him impaled and pinned to the ground a large slab of stone, he realized why he hadn't. His injury hadn't stopped him from talking, though, and he cursed his pink haired attacker to hell and back the entire time they were digging him out.

"He was being rather unpleasant so I didn't put him back together until this morning," Kakuzu said easily.

There was a loud sound of Hidan kicking the door, only to be followed by more cursing. Sasori scoffed; that was a pull door. Deidara snickered when Hidan finally entered.

The silverette sneered. "Shut the fuck up."

That only made the blond laugh louder and Sasori excused himself before he was dragged into the mess. The door closed behind him just as Hidan threw himself over the table at Deidara.

* * *

Nagato greeted them at the entrance to their base.

Sasori knew that the twenty-two-year-old man was kind and polite when he was not acting as leader of the group. He was confident and projected that well through a mask of charisma that played a large part in keeping the Akatsuki together, especially when it came to newer members.

Currently, he was wearing his mask and he merely nodded at them. He and Konan exchanged a few words too quiet to hear before the blue haired woman returned to them. "You have ten minutes to put down your things before there is a meeting. We will be discussing the mission, as well as future plans."

Kisame questioningly raised the girl in his arms and Konan gestured toward one of the corridors. "One of Orochimaru's old cages have been adjusted to suit our current needs. We'll move her out until something more suitable is ready, but until then we'll have to make do."

Sasori had to remind himself that it was Kisame that needed to carry the girl there and that there was absolutely no reason for him to follow the blue man. He followed Deidara towards their personal rooms, ignoring the chattering of the younger as they went. Once in his room, he dumped his things on the floor. Then he stripped himself of his uniform and threw on some loose clothes, instantly feeling less restrained.

He checked his wrist, making sure that the wrappings here properly holding, before he exited his room.

* * *

Every single core member of the Akatsuki was present when the meeting began. Nagato sat at the head of the table with Yahiko, the third of the childhood friends, and Konan sat to their right. Sasori took his seat and was soon joined by Deidara. Itachi and Kisame arrived together and Hidan and Kakuzu were right behind them.

All meetings held after major jobs and missions went like this. However, there was a tenseness in the air that usually wasn't present and Sasori felt it increase the further along with their report they went.

Itachi began a verbal report, with the other members chipping in here and there when they thought the Uchiha had missed something, though there really wasn't much he did leave out. Konan and Zetsu spoke up from time to time about what they noticed from the outside.

Finally, Itachi reached the point of the story where they found the pink haired girl and everyone turned to look at him.

"Sasori, you are sure this girl is your Soulmate?" Nagato asked.

Sasori felt himself bristle at the repetitive question against his certainty and took a deep breath to try and calm down because it was not as though the suspicions were unwarranted.

It was simply difficult to explain it to those who hadn't experienced it.

Instead, he nodded. "Yes," he said firmly.

"Is it possible Orochimaru knew?" Zetsu wondered.

"Knew that Sasori and the girl were Soulmates?" Kisame asked.

"If that were the case, wouldn't he want to keep her with him?" Deidara said. "So that he could use that to his advantage? He could literally torture Sasori through her."

"A lucky coincidence, then."

Sasori narrowed his eyes. "The girl looks not much older than me," he said slowly. "I've been experiencing pain through our bond since I was a kid. Orochimaru defected only a few years ago."

Itachi was quick to catch on. "It is possible she was somewhere else before Orochimaru got to her."

"Somewhere equally evil," Yahiko said.

The orange-haired man was twenty-two and was the most laid back of the three from Ame. Sasori was sure that behind his carefree mask was someone hardened by years of living on the streets, but it appeared as though he had taken it upon himself to balance out his more serious friends. The man usually never went out onto the field, and instead took care of the political side of their organization. Sasori guessed that his personality allowed him to form relationships with those whose support the Akatsuki needed.

"Or maybe Orochimaru was evil for longer than we thought, un," Deidara added.

Yahiko nudged his friend, and Nagato nodded. "Orochimaru's files were very well organized," he said. "I separated the papers that may hold information on her. Sasori, I'll give them to you. Sort through them while you're at it."

He nodded. "Understood."

* * *

Later that day, Sasori once again found himself sitting beside the unconscious girl. On the table beside him were two piles of files they had found in Orochimaru's base and in his hand was one of many he had yet to look through.

Even during his time within the Akatsuki, Orochimaru had had some questionable habits. When he had defected, the Akatsuki had salvaged some of his creations, one of them being the chakra containment room the girl was placed in. Sasori didn't really know the full details of how it worked, but he knew enough to know that it recognized the chakra of those inserted into the system and stopped them from using chakra while within its a glass wall, which was also reinforced with chakra to make it more durable.

Sasori halfheartedly wondered how that would help, though, because the girl had broken his wrist without the aid of chakra.

Still, he did not allow that thought to bother him. After all, Nagato had given him first access to the files regarding the girl, and he would have to be quick with them before he handed them off to have them properly analyzed. He was sure that at some point, the files would be passed from the Akatsuki to the T&I organization.

He closed the file currently in his hands and placed it on one of the two piles. So far, all he had found were records of experiment results and medical files. Those were fascinating in their own right and allowed him to gauge the girl's abilities, but there was something specific he was looking for, and that was not how long it took for the girl to heal herself of severe wounds.

He wondered, not for the first time if the girl could even recognize pain.

Finally, he came across a single file, thinner than the others, and he knew this was it. He tossed the others onto the ground by his feet and flipped it open. He was instantly met with a photograph of her, which he put to the side.

On the top was a number, which he guessed was something of a serial number. Below was a series of headers that gave trivial information on her. There was a section labeled 'origin' too, though under that was simply the name of another file, which he noted down.

Finally, at the very bottom, was an 'additional notes' section, followed by hasty hand-scribbled notes. He skimmed over it, eyes lingering on a single line among other unimportant ones.

 _...the experiment will be known as 'Sakura'..._

 _Sakura._

Sasori looked up at the bed. His eyes lingered on her striking pink hair and he thought of the girl's green eyes.

Empty, lifeless eyes.

Still, her name suited her.

Sakura.

* * *

 **Chapter four is here~**

 _ **Darque: I really like Itachi/Sasori friendship. I have no idea why. I just love it.**_

 **Raven: I can tell.**

 _ **Darque: I know right. In my stories, they're almost always friends. It's like, sarcasm versus brutal honesty.**_

 **Raven: Haha.**

 _ **Darque: But yeah, Sakura soon.**_

 **Raven: Maybe.**

 **Read and Review~**


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter FIVE_**

Sasori had never been the most patient person around. In fact, some people might say he was one of the most impatient people around. Of course, Sasori would deny this, because he was sure there was a difference between being impatient and being on time.

Still, he had to admit he did not like wasting time, not when he could have been using said time to do something more productive.

That was why he would not be admitting anytime soon that he had spent the last few hours simply staring at his Soulmate's face. When not covered in blood and dirt, clean of the stench of rotting bodies, and when he himself was not confused, the girl was rather pretty.

Sakura, his mind supplied.

Sakura, he corrected, was rather pretty.

He could clearly remember the black markings that had decorated her skin when her body had been repairing itself. He slowly raised a hand and ran a finger gently over her bare arm, right where he knew the black lines lay dormant. Sakura was currently dressed int eh Akatsuki medical garb. The healers had taken a look at her when they had returned.

Still, even before that, the girl had appeared perfectly healed. Sasori once again glanced over her, trying to imagine the tremendous stress Orochimaru's experiments must have put on her. To this girl, who was seventeen according to the data records and looked much younger probably due to malnutrition as well as genetics, pain probably had a whole different meaning. He wondered if she even noticed when she felt his pain through their link?

As he ran his finger over her delicate ones, he felt them twitch. He froze, and his eyes darted up to see her eyelashes fluttering before they slowly opened.

She was awake.

Sasori knew that he should be getting someone, or at least letting the rest of the Akatsuki know. He found himself unable to, though, and he simply sat there, watching her as she slowly appeared to gather her bearings.

The girl slowly sat up and glanced down at her wrists as she did so. Sasori wondered if she noticed his own bandages, or if it had been something else that had caught her attention. She then looked up and Sasori found himself staring into empty green eyes.

She did not speak and made no signs of speaking anytime soon. What kind of things had been beaten into her during her time with Orochimaru?

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

The girl blinked, as though surprised by the sound of his voice. He saw her lips quiver, like she was considering opening her mouth, before it resolutely clamped shut. The green of her eyes seemed to stare right into his soul and he abruptly decided that he had to leave.

"It's rude to not reply when someone asks you a question," he muttered. He got to his feet and turned towards the door. "Don't try to leave the room; you won't get far. I'll go report you're awake."

That got a reaction out of her. It wasn't much, but Sasori saw the way her fingers twitched. He thought of the way she had snapped his wrist and how he had let her get a hold of his limb in the first place. He put a careful distance between them but made no further moves towards the door.

The girl continued to watch him but made no signs of recognizing him. Of course, that was normal, seeing as they had never met before, but Sasori felt a surge of irritation over the fact that he was very aware of the girl before him, while she was looking at him as if he were something between a possible threat and an insignificant insect on the wall.

That did not sit well with him. At all.

"Well?" Sasori had no idea why he was so on edge.

Sakura seemed to gather whatever courage she had been scrapping together.

"Orochimaru-Orochimaru-sama said I can see him-" She clamped down on her tongue again, eyes wide at her own outburst. Her words were choppy and hesitant and her voice was raspy. Sasori guessed she hadn't been taught to speak, and hence she did not talk often. That, or it was a result of a raw throat caused by continuous screaming. He remembered the wounds they had found on her, and it was not very hard to picture the second possibility being a reality as well.

Sasori wondered who the 'he' she wanted to see was.

"Did he now?" Sasori took one last glance at the door before he slowly sat back down. "And where is _Orochimaru-sama?_ "

He hadn't meant for his tone to be so mocking, but the girl did not seem to notice. Her eyes narrowed a little, though, as something seemed to catch her attention. "You are not one of Orochimaru-sama's men."

Sasori took one last glance at the door, then decided that reporting in could wait just a little longer. In fact, he would not be surprised if someone had already noticed. He pulled his chair a little away from the bed and sat down. "How did you guess?"

Sakura did not reply. Her mouth stayed resolutely shut and Sasori sighed at the expected reaction. "You're right," he told her. "You're currently not with Orochimaru."

The pinkette curled in on herself, eyes flashing and eyebrows furrowed. "What did you do to him?" She asked.

"Nothing," Sasori said, and kept the _yet_ to himself. "We're looking for him, though, because there is something he can do for us."

Sakura wrapped her arms around her knees and continued to peek out at him. "And what will you do to me?"

There were many ways Sasori could have answered that. There were no plans for her yet, but that would change once the rest of the members came in contact with her. The Akatsuki could not torture the girl for information without putting Sasori himself under great pain, but he knew that it could very well come to that if the girl showed signs of being willingly loyal to the snake.

However, the way she asked the question put him on edge. He recognized the way she protectively curled in on herself, an instinctive reaction built in against constant abuse. He had also seen the way she looked up at him from beneath her eyelashes, her piercing green orbs partially hidden by her hair. She did not know whether to look him in the eyes or not, and he could easily guess that that was also something built into her after years of being looked down on.

He didn't touch on that at all and, instead, he shrugged. "Nothing," he said again. "So just stay put and no running away."

He did not know why he rushed out of the way he did, but no one was around to suggest that perhaps it had been because of the way Sakura's eyes had widened in confusion in a way he recognized.

He remembered how, years ago, back when he had been a child, he would stumble into the living room clutching at wounds that did not exist and crying at pain he could not understand, questioning why he hurt even if he had done nothing. He could picture the look in his eyes reflecting on his parents' gaze and he could easily overlap Sakura's expression to that of his own.

And yet, there was something slightly different, and he knew exactly why.

Sakura was questioning why she did not hurt, even if she had probably done something, and that brought a surge of pressure he could not name onto his chest. Perhaps it had not been her eyes after all, because the weight stayed even after he had closed the door and he could no longer see them.

* * *

Sasori went to Deidara first. He did not know why he thought his partner was a better person to go to than, say, the leader of their organization, but that was what his blank mind had come up with, and he regretted it the moment he had knocked on the blond's door.

He must be more out of it than he had initially thought if he thought _Deidara_ of all people could give him answers.

The door was thrown open seconds later and Deidara stared at him for a while. Sasori halfheartedly noted that he rarely visited the younger teen in his room.

"Uh, hi?" Deidara glanced around, as though he thought it was a prank. Sasori held back the urge to hit him.

"The girl is awake," he said. "What do I do with her?"

Deidara blinked once, twice. "Oh."

Sasori tried to keep the impatience off his face. "What do I do with her?" He repeated.

Deidara stepped out of his room and closed his door. "Have you told Nagato?" He asked. "Yahiko?"

Sasori shook his head. "She just woke up."

Deidara hummed. "Did you talk to her?"

Sasori hesitated. "Yes," he said slowly.

"Did she try to kill you?"

Sasori glared at the amusement in Deidara's eyes. "No."

Deidara huffed. "Had to ask, un," he muttered to himself. He then placed his hands on his hips. "Well, first thing first, I think you better go tell Yahiko and the others," he said. "Maybe Kakuzu too? In case she needs medical checkup?"

Sasori blinked, surprised at the rather mature reply. "That's a good idea," he admitted.

Deidara grinned, then began leading the way towards Nagato and Yahiko's office. "What did you talk about, un?" He asked.

"A little about Orochimaru," Sasori replied. "I asked her if she knew where he was."

"I doubt she did," Deidara said thoughtfully. "What did you think of her reaction to his name?"

"Unless she's a good actor, I'd say definitely not a fan."

"That's good."

Sasori nodded.

"Did you tell her you're her Soulmate?" Deidara asked.

Sasori paused in his steps. "No."

The blond stopped as well. "What? Why not?"

"She is a prisoner here," Sasori deadpanned. "It is a little difficult to bring up."

Deidara winced. "Ah, right." The two of them stopped once again, this time in front of a door. "We're here."

Sasori knocked without much thought and pushed the door open when permission was given. Nagato was sitting at the table, surrounded by piles of paper and files, while Yahiko was on the ground, sorting through another stack.

"Sasori, Deidara," Nagato greeted. Yahiko waved. "How can we help you?"

"The girl is awake," Sasori said. There was a brief silence, an awkward pause, where everyone waited for him to continue, but Sasori's mind went blank all over again. He mentally cursed Sakura for haunting his thoughts even when she wasn't here.

Yahiko seemed to take pity on him. "Does the girl, you know, have a name?"

Sasori nodded. "Sakura," he said, then held up the files he had brought back with him. "These are experiment data," he said. "And these appear to be observations outside of the lab." He placed the two stacks on the table, already feeling better. Facts, numbers and data, he could work with.

Nagato took the top one flipped it open. Sasori caught a glimpse of the photo he had put to the side the first time around. "Is her name a code of some sort?" He asked. "Or was it the result of very uncreative scientists giving a girl with pink hair and green eyes a very uncreative name?"

Sasori shrugged. "I flipped through it, but there wasn't much explanation."

Nagato hummed in response. "And what kind of impression did you get from Sakura?"

Sasori frowned, and Deidara nudged him. "Just tell him what you told me, un," he said.

Sasori glared at the blond, who merely grinned in response. "She appears aware that we are not with Orochimaru," he said. "And she did not appear particularly affected when I told her we were after him. She does not seem to know where Orochimaru is at this moment in time."

"A victim of his, then," Nagato mused. "Still, we will have to keep an eye on her, just in case."

Yahiko stretched. "Should I go call the others?" He asked eagerly, already pushing the mountain of paper to the side.

Nagato glared. "You finish your work," he ordered, then turned back towards him. "Did she say anything else?"

Sasori shook his head. "Nothing that caught my attention," he said. "Though there are signs of long-term abuse. However, with the way her chakra appears to be centered around healing, I doubt we can find scars and the likes which will allow us to identify them. Also, I suspect she may either not be comfortable with speaking due to past injuries, or that she has not been taught at all."

Nagato made a few notes. "Have Kakuzu check on her again," he said. "I don't think we should move her out of the room just yet. I want Itachi to talk to her at some point, and I will visit her myself once I finish off here."

"Will we be reporting this to the higher ups?" Yahiko asked. "If I recall, Tsunade-sama is a renowned medic as well. I, for one, would rather have a pretty lady look at me than a guy covered in stitches."

The man's comment was largely ignored, but Sasori thought of Senju Tsunade. The woman acted as the head medic for the Elemental Nation and worked closely with Namikaze Minato, who was the current leader of the City of Fire. If there really was something wrong with the girl, she would be the one to go to.

"I sent off the status report for yesterday's operation this morning," Nagato said offhandedly. "I made no mention of Sakura just yet. I want to make sure of a few things before I reveal her existence to the council."

"Some of those old people can be really mean," Yahiko agreed.

Sasori himself had no qualms with that. He was sure many, especially those who were against the Akatsuki, would find fault in keeping Sakura with them. "I will go alert Itachi?" He asked. "And Kakuzu?"

Nagato nodded. "I will make an official announcement at dinner today," he told them. "But it might be better to get things sorted out before everyone decides they want to catch a glimpse of your girl."

Sasori just about held himself back from making a comment about 'his girl'. Was that how everyone thought of it? Instead, he bowed his head. "Understood."

However, before he could turn and leave, Deidara slapped him hard on the shoulder. "Actually, Danna, why don't you go back to your girl?" He asked. "I can go talk to Kakuzu and the Uchiha bastard."

Sasori paused, wondering if he had heard right. "Why would I do that?" He asked.

Deidara rolled his eyes and seemed to ignore him as he turned towards Nagato and Yahiko instead. "What'd you think, un?"

Nagato tapped his chin thoughtfully. "That is a good idea," he said. "You said Sakura is awake, right?"

Sasori nodded warily.

"She must be very confused and afraid of what is going on," Yahiko chirped.

"And I have to be the one to babysit her?" Sasori asked, knowing where this was going and not liking it one bit. "Why?"

"Because she's your Soulmate," Deidara said like it was obvious.

"She's your girl," Yahiko said at the same time.

"That's an order, Sasori," Nagato said.

Sasori was then promptly kicked out of the room.

* * *

 **Update~**

 _ **Darque: A little interaction...sorry if it's not much...but you see...yeah...**_

 **Raven:...So, Sasori is pushing Sakura away because he is new to all this and he's a shy little boy.**

 _ **Darque: Yes, exactly. More SasoSaku will come in future chapters, I promise. Also**_ _ **, I think I kind of reverted to the old 'bully the MC for comedy' thing I tend to do with other stories near the end.**_

 **Raven: You did.**

 _ **Darque: I can't help it.**_

 **Raven: Haha. Well, other characters will soon be making an entrance. Naruto, Sasuke, Gaara~**

 _ **Darque: OH MY YES SO LOOK FORWARD TO THAT~**_

 **Read and Review~**


	6. Chapter 6

**_Chapter SIX_**

Sasori knew that he could simply retreat back to his room; he could deal with the consequences of not following orders, as stupid as said orders had been, later when his mind was not such a jumbled mess.

He didn't, though, and he soon found himself standing outside Sakura's room once again. He told himself it was because Nagato could get real naggy. Then he blamed Deidara for pulling such a stupid stunt and the pinkette herself for being his Soulmate.

Because he himself was not intrigued. At all.

He opened the door without knocking because despite everything the girl was not a guest. Sakura was in the exact same position as she had been when he had left her, sitting up on the bed, and she looked up as he stepped in. He could feel her eyes on him as he sat back down in the chair. Once comfortable, he met her green gaze with his own brown ones.

Sakura flinched violently and quickly looked away. He saw the way she tensed before she slowly looked back up, hesitantly, and once again looked into his eyes. She opened her mouth, then closed it again.

"What?" Sasori asked. "No one here is going to hurt you, not unless you give them a reason to anyways. If you have something to say, say it." He watched her mindlessly touch her wrist

"This room is chakra repressing?" She asked after a while.

Sasori gestured at the collar around her neck. "It's that," he said. "The room itself has effects too, so don't think about running."

The pinkette continued to rub at her wrists. "How long have I been here?"

"Two days," he told her honestly. "We pulled you out three or so days ago."

Sakura nodded, still not looking up. "What do you want?" She asked quietly. "I am replaceable. I am no leverage against Orochimaru-sama."

Sasori clicked his tongue. "First, stop calling him that," he ordered. "And second, maybe you have information we don't have yet. Names? Places? Anything to share?"

Sakura's mouth stayed shut, but Sasori had a feeling it was out of fear more than stubbornness or loyalty. He wondered if she feared the information she had, or the lack of it. He sighed, wondering how much he was allowed to share. "How long have you been with Orochimaru?" he asked.

"I do not know," Sakura replied. "Years? I had nothing to keep track of days with. At one point, I gave up trying to count."

Sasori paused because a few things had just become apparent. "You were somewhere before Orochimaru's place?"

Sakura frowned. "Of course," she said.

Sasori noted this down. "Where were you?" He asked.

Sakura glanced down at her hands again. "I do not know," she said again.

He eyed her for a few seconds before he nodded. "Okay," he said. That probably meant either the snake had allies somewhere, she had been taken from another messed up location, or she was a recent victim of kidnapping. Probably the former, because if she did have a home before being brought to Orochimaru's side it would be simpler to tell him just that. It was more reasonable too, after looking back at his own history of bond shared wounds.

He could feel the girl's gaze boring into the side of his head. "Since you answered a question of mine, I'll answer something of yours," he said. "I'm sure you have questions."

He saw surprise flicker through her green orbs. He waited, holding back the urge to tap his foot impatiently on the ground. Finally, she looked up again. "Who are you?" She asked.

Sasori paused, realizing that he hadn't introduced himself. He knew Sakura's name from the files, but she did not know his. "Sasori," he said.

He saw Sakura freeze, a subtle stiffening in her frame she tried to hide. Her fingers twitched. "Of the Akatsuki?"

Sasori carefully placed both his hands onto his lap. His chakra flowed through his fingers, ready to be summoned the moment she tried to attack him. "So you know us."

Sakura nodded. "Of course," she said. "Orochimaru-sama detested you, after all."

"What lies did the snake fill you up with?" He asked before he could stop himself.

To his surprise, Sakura shook her head. "I know he lies," she said rather easily. "I just cannot tell when he speaks truth."

Sasori watched her, noting the way she slowly relaxed. "Do we not have kill-on-sight orders over our heads or something?"

"I am no longer by Orochimaru's side," the pinkette replied. "My chakra is suppressed and I still do not know where I am. It will be inefficient for me to act without knowing anything, and it will be foolish to turn you hostile when you have not hurt me yet."

"Smart," he said without thinking.

The corner of her lips twitched, and Sasori willed her to smile. She did not, though her eyes did soften. "One of us has to be."

Sasori narrowed his eyes, both at his thoughts and her words. "One of you, as in you and Orochimaru?"

Sakura blinked, hesitated, then shook her head again. "No."

Sasori decided not to press. "I see."

"What do you want with Orochimaru-sama?" Sakura asked.

Sasori pushed away the childish urge to tell her that she had asked two questions instead of one. "Do you know what he does?" He asked instead.

"He kills," she said. "He makes people cry."

 _Close enough_ , he thought. "And do you know what we do?"

"You get in his way."

Sasori felt himself smiling. "Yes."

Sakura did not seem to understand what he found funny. "You get in my way," she said, a little more softly. "He hurts us when you do."

Sasori thought of her blood covered state once again. "I know," he said. "We stop him, and no one gets hurt."

The pinkette nodded stiffly and did not look up.

"There are others like you?" He asked.

Sakura nodded a second time. "Many of us."

"I'll make sure Nagato hears about that," he promised, and watched the way her shoulders slowly began to lose their tension.

"Okay."

* * *

He was not present when Yahiko visited Sakura. After he had reported what she had told him, it had been decided that Nagato may be a little too intense for her, especially with the way she appeared to be scared and wary of them, and Yahiko had been volunteered instead. Sasori and Deidara had been sent out on a simple mission to collect the report of their men out on border patrol in what was probably a way for everyone to give him time to further clear his thoughts, as well as to give him something to do while the questioning was happening. Itachi had gone with Yahiko, and Sasori and Deidara entered the corridor to the girl's room just as the two were leaving through the door.

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," Yahiko was saying. "Feel free to call anyone if you need anything, okay?" He closed the oneway glass door but did not look away.

Itachi looked up, noticing them first. "Welcome back," he said.

Yahiko glanced over as well. "Oh hey, nice timing!" He grinned. "I'm done, so she's all yours." He then turned back towards the room and opened the door a crack. "Sasori's back, Sakura-chan!"

Sasori scowled and a hand automatically shot out, slamming the door shut again. "Here," he said, and shoved the files into the man's arms.

Yahiko winced. "Are you angry?"

Sasori did not have a chance to reply, because his partner leaned in obnoxiously in front of him. "Let me meet her too," Deidara said. "Introduce me, Danna!" The blond nudged him, and Sasori hissed in annoyance. Deidara's grin widened, and he stuck his head around the doorframe. Without even realizing, Sasori reached out and yanked him back.

"She appears to be a nice girl," Itachi said helpfully.

"I agree," Yahiko said. "We can discuss things in detail later, at the meeting before dinner tonight."

"That's in less than an hour," Deidara said. "C'mon Danna, _please_ ~"

"And why must you have my permission before seeing her?" Sasori snapped. He tried to walk past the trio and head towards his room, but the blond grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"Because she's your girl?"

Sasori whipped around, ready to give him a piece of his mind when a hand came down on his shoulder. He turned towards Yahiko, already extremely annoyed, when the look on his leader's face made him pause. "There's something I want to address regarding that," he said.

Sasori glanced over his shoulder and saw Sakura staring out the door at them. "If this is about you not trusting that Sakura is my Soulmate because I said it was based on a feeling, I-" he began in a harsh whisper.

"No," Itachi said. "No one said anything about not believing you."

"Then what is it?"

"It's only a suspicion, but Sakura's knowledge on the topic appears...sparse," Yahiko said.

Sasori frowned. "And that is a problem because...?"

"You have lived your entire life being pushed around by the Soulmate bond," Itachi said. Sasori glared murderously at the raven, but the Uchiha ignored him. "And yet, the reason for all your suffering does not seem aware of it."

Deidara kept glancing at him worry, and that made Sasori even more annoyed. "How-how do you know that, un?" The blond asked. "Did you mention it?"

"I may have let it slip," Yahiko admitted sheepishly. "It was not much, though, really."

"Enough that most people would understand," Itachi revealed unsympathetically. He ignored Yahiko's betrayed look. "But she did not react."

"Did not react to Danna being her Soulmate?"

Itachi shook his head. "Did not react to the concept of Soulmates at all."

"And," Sasori breathed out, successfully catching everyone's attention, "this is a problem because?"

Itachi eyed him in a way that made Sasori want to gauge them out. "If it is not a problem for you, then it hardly matters," he said, in a way that suggested he knew more then he was letting on.

"Then it should not be a problem," he said.

"Of course." Itachi nodded agreeably, and Sasori had no idea why it made him feel so much worse. From the corner of his eye, he saw Yahiko and Itachi share a look.

"I'm going to go tell Nagato what we found," Yahiko said. "Everyone is expected to attend dinner tonight, so we're all there for the meeting afterward. I had dinner made for Sakura-chan as well. Sasori-"

"Am I to bring it to her?" He asked sulkily.

Yahiko grinned. "You got that right."

Deidara raised a hand. "I can do that-"

Sasori found himself speaking up before the blond could even finish. "I'll do it," he snapped, and the moment the words left his lips he saw an insufferable grin bloom on Deidara's face.

"Well, if you _really want to_ -"

"Shut up," he said and spun around on his heels.

"Her tray's in the kitchen-"

Sasori stormed off, fully intending to simply ignore everything else the idiots behind his called out to him.

He could just picture the smug looks being exchanged behind him.

* * *

 **We're so so SO sorry about the late update O.O**

 _ **Darque: My laptop kind of died, and I could only upload chapters I'd already written, which really wasn't much...**_

 **Raven: Sorry, blame Darque and the ill-treatment of her laptop.**

 _ **Darque: D:**_

 **Raven: I'm kidding XD**

 _ **(Darque: Stuff will happen soon...**_

 **Raven: It will indeed...)**

 **Read and Review~**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter SEVEN**_

When Sasori returned with Sakura's dinner tray in his hands, Yahiko, Itachi, and Deidara were still loitering around. He had half a mind to simply turn around and wait until they had left, but a part of him just knew they would be there until he arrived, and another part of him questioned why he cared that they were. He simply marched past them and entered the room.

Sakura had looked up when he appeared, and she watched with what he thought was curiosity as he placed the tray on the table beside her bed. Her gaze then shifted from him to the tray. She did not move towards it.

"I don't know what you like, and it's not like I'm the one who prepared it, so if you have complaints, you can just not eat it," he told her curtly. The door had closed behind his entry, but he did not doubt for a second that everyone outside was listening in.

"That is for me?" Sakura asked.

Sasori nodded. "Dinner."

"Oh," Sakura shifted on the bed. "I can eat it?"

Sasori suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. "What else do you want to do with it?"

Sakura did not reply, and she continued to stare at the tray. Just as Sasori was about to prompt her once more to eat it, she slowly reached out towards it. Sasori reached out and helped her lower the table attached to the bed frame, then placed the tray in front of her. Sakura curiously eyed the utensils placed at the side, and for a moment Sasori was worried she would ignore them and starting eating with her hands and was surprised when she hesitantly picked them up, then began to use them with surprising skill and grace.

"Where did you learn manners?" He asked.

Sakura paused with the spoon halfway to her mouth. "I am trained in a lot of fields," she told him. "It was required of me and my role."

"You did infiltration?" He guessed.

Sakura blinked up at him, then glanced at the door where Deidara, Itachi, and Yahiko were still standing around. He could not see them, but he could see their shadows from where they were just around the corner. He wondered how much they had gotten out of her. "Among other things," she said.

Sasori did not press and, instead, he took a seat by her bedside again. Sakura ate slowly, and he sensed it the moment Yahiko appeared to lose interest and wandered away from the door. Deidara followed soon after and Itachi went with him. He had a feeling the Uchiha had stayed just to make sure no one childishly barged into the room. He glanced over at the watch and noted that it had almost been an hour since he had entered the room. He scanned his eyes over Sakura's meal and noted that there was still a bit of it left.

"Why were they watching me?" The pinkette asked suddenly. "It is not as though I can escape."

Sasori shrugged. "They're idiots," he said. "Ignore them."

Sakura blinked in surprise. "Oh."

He glanced over at the clock again, deciding that his friends deserved the benefit of doubt, and concluded that they had left because they had better things to do and not because they had to in order to make it to dinner in time. "There is a meeting in a few minutes," he said. "We will be discussing you, and I am expected to attend."

Sakura turned towards him but remained silent. Sasori stood up and stretched, wondering why he had sat and watched the girl eat for an hour. "You can keep eating," he told her. "When you're done just lift that hatch thing to raise the table and leave the tray to the side. Someone'll come to get it later."

 _Hopefully, it wouldn't be him._

"Okay," Sakura said.

Sasori nodded. "I'll...I'll see you later."

* * *

Sasori knew he was probably a troublesome friend to have. Deidara had once told him that he was the kind of person you knew was reliable, but there was just that _something_ stopping you from trusting them to keep themselves alive through the simplest of tasks. Even after all these years Sasori didn't know what that something was, but as he found concerning amusement in building a mountain from his mashed potatoes, he could feel that something _right there_.

Usually, members ate dinner whenever they pleased, wherever they pleased, but on days with meetings everyone was required to eat together, to make sure they were all present for the gathering after. Deidara hated these meetings with a passion, simply because they were so _boring_ , but everyone knew that the main topic of today was Sakura, and Sasori felt annoyingly compelled to give his own two cents about her, especially from what he had gauged while talking to her.

Honestly, though, he doubted that anyone who had actually spoken to the girl would disagree that, beneath the damage years of abuse at Orochimaru's side had caused, she was a kind girl.

Soon after, dinner ended. Nagato gestured for them to move into the meeting room, and Sasori sat down in his seat with a sigh. He knew that the chairs in this particular room were better than any of the others found around their base. He closed his eyes while everyone else tried to get comfortable. Honestly, most of them disliked these meetings without even knowing why.

Finally, once Hidan had finally taken a seat, just on the edge and looking ready to bolt any moment, Nagato brought a single file into view and placed it onto the table. "I hope you're all rested," he began. "As I'm sure you know, today's focus is Sasori's girl currently sitting in one of Orochimaru's containment cells."

Sasori was careful to keep his expression blank. He could feel several of the Akatsuki glancing over at him.

Nagato flipped open the file. "Itachi, could you go over the time of her finding?"

Itachi nodded. "During our operation against the Northern Base, we came across Sakura in one of the holding cells located on the lowest floor, which was reserved for the most dangerous of experiments. Sasori had been suffering from pain shared between the bond, with constant pain in his hands suggesting stimulation of the wound after the initial injury. The girl was heavily injured and unconscious and was sitting in a pool of her own blood. Her hands," Itachi raised his own, palm up, "were pinned to the wall of the cell with a knife, and the moment it was pulled out, Sasori's own pain immediately resided."

Konan raised her hand. "If Sasori started hurting during the operation, doesn't that mean someone did this to her while you were in the hideout?"

Itachi nodded. "That is the likely assumption.

"You didn't see anyone leaving her cell? This corridor you found her cell in is rather long, and is only one way."

Itachi shook his head. "We were still rather far away when it started," he admitted. "Perhaps her attacker was among the sea of men we managed to round up."

Konan hummed and leaned back in her chair.

"Thank you, Itachi," Nagato said. "If there's anything you want to add, Sasori, feel free to speak up."

Sasori jumped at his own name, then frowned. From the corner of his eye, he could see Yahiko trying to suppress a grin.

Nagato hid his amusement much better, but Sasori had known him for years and could see it dancing around in his eyes as well. "Now, after you brought her back, Kakuzu looked over her, and it was established that she is definitely a chakra user, though how much of that is a result of Orochimaru's tampering is still unknown. Yahiko and Itachi also talked to her a little, as did Sasori." He linked his hands in front of himself. "Before we go further, share your opinion."

"She does not seem to have been filled in on anything too important," Yahiko immediately said. "Considering the state she was found in, I doubt Orochimaru puts much value in her."

"She might not know names and numbers, but she knows faces and places," Itachi said. "I think there is a chance we can bring her to our side."

Konan ran a hand through her hair. "There isn't really sides, I think," she said carefully. "At least not in her mind. Orochimaru was her captor and abuser, and it's possible that in her eyes, she was simply passed from one person to another."

Sasori steeled himself for what he was about to say. "I told her she would not be hurt here," he admitted. "She appears to believe me."

"Isn't that just going to screw us over when that isn't the case?" Hidan asked.

Sasori's eyes narrowed. "Are you going to torture me alongside her for information she probably doesn't even have?"

He watched the realization hit his friends. He knew that sometimes, it was easy to forget that he and the girl currently held prisoner in their base were Soulmates. Sasori's problem had always been real to them, but they had managed to work around it. It was so much different when the other half of his bond was suddenly _right there_.

"For now, there is no interrogation planned," Nagato said firmly. "Nor will it be considered in the near future."

"She can be a liability," Kakuzu pointed out. Sasori found himself glaring again.. "If she is caught or captured, she can literally be used to torture Sasori from miles away."

"Sakura herself appears unaware of the Soulmate bond between her and Sasori," Yahiko said. "In fact, she seems to not know of it at all. I mentioned it, but I doubt it actually stuck with her nor do I think she understands it. Unless Orochimaru somehow already knows, I doubt he'd find out through her."

"She wouldn't tell him something that'd make him hurt her more, right?" Deidara asked.

"It's not only Orochimaru, though," Zetsu pointed out. "Wasn't she someplace else before she was handed over to the snake?"

"She said there were others like her," Sasori added. "And she also said she was no leverage against Orochimaru. I see no reason why Orochimaru should come after her in particular."

Yahiko nodded. "If she's disposable, I doubt he'd waste resources on retrieving her, especially since she currently is sitting in the heart of our headquarters."

"What are we going to do about the council?" Konan asked.

"I still haven't made any mention of her," Nagato admitted. "On that particular topic, we'll have to make a decision and stick to it."

"Hand her over like we're probably supposed to, or hide her here?" Kisame asked.

"Men like Danzo will have no qualms with hurting Sasori to get information from the girl," Itachi said.

Sasori found himself nodding. Shimura Danzo had been a long time thorn in their side. The man held a high ranking position within the council and simply put, he was dangerous. The Akatsuki suspected he might actually have something to do with Orochimaru, but they had no proof, and the man was powerful enough to shut down any official search in the upfront, then take down who every cast the doubt on him through political measures. They had never seen eye to eye, and between them, it had mostly been a game of not showing a weakness the other could take advantage of.

Especially due to the Orochimaru case, they could not risk creating any more problems. If they made the slightest of mistakes, Konan was sure Danzo and his followers would move to disband them.

"But if he finds out we had her all along, that'd sure give him a reason to pain us negatively to the public," Zetsu said.

Sasori did not think Zetus, or anyone for the matter, wanted to hand the girl over to Danzo if only to spite him. Still, it was a valid point being made.

Sasori scoffed. "I'd rather keep her here," he said. "I'll have to watch her and make sure she doesn't get another paper cut." The moment the words left his mouth, he saw Konan casually cover her mouth, eyes smiling. Kisame was grinning, and he ducked away when Deidara tried to pat him on the back.

Nagato managed to take the comment in professional stride. "Is there anyone here who'd like to hand the girl over to the council," he glanced at Hidan when he raised his arm, "and has a _valid reason_ for saying so?"

Sasori's hand remained firmly on the table as he looked around. Everyone else appeared to be doing the same, but apart from Hidan, who muttered under his breath she lowered his hand, no one else made any moves.

Nagato nodded. "All in favor of her staying," he noted. "Sakura will continue to remain under watch. We will see if she has valuable information without the use of violence. Sasori, you are in charge of making sure she is comfortable."

Sasori tossed his hands into the air, knowing that it was rare for him to lose his composure like this but no longer caring. "I knew it," he muttered.

* * *

 **Update!**

 _ **Darque: Sorry I'm late again, I had a portfolio for a Uni due TONIGHT and I just started like, yesterday, and I pulled an all-nighter right after I spent 12 at my part-time and having 4 hours of sleep the night before...soooo...yeah...**_

 **Raven: Look at you, all grown up, talking about Uni and work and lack of sleep...**

 _ **Darque:...I tired boy.**_

 **Raven: Nawww, go rest. No gaming.**

 _ **Darque: Yes mother.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter EIGHT**_

The days slowly passed and soon, it had been two weeks since their invasion of Orochimaru's Northern Base. Sasori found himself regularly visiting Sakura. He would bring her her meals and he would read or write reports while she ate. Once she finished, she would turn to watch him as he flipped through pages or dipped his brush into ink over and over. It became a rather mundane but fixed routine.

Sasori had been carrying Sakura's dinner towards her room when he bumped into Itachi. He easily regained his balance and noted that not a single drop of soup had spilled.

Itachi dipped his head in silent apology. "For Sakura?"

Sasori nodded and shifted his hold on the tray.

The Uchiha blinked and went still, something he often did when he was considering possibilities and outcomes and chances and luck and everything in between prior to taking action before he lifted the paper bag Sasori hadn't realized he had been carrying. He dug through it, then pulled out a smaller bag. "Anmitsu," he said, holding it out. "I doubt she would have had the pleasure of indulging in sweets."

Sasori took it with a small nod. "Thank you," he said, surprised. The raven had an unexpectedly sweet tooth, and he usually kept a rather tight hold on his snacks.

Itachi nodded. "Perhaps you could ask her if there is anything she would like to eat," he said. "Our meals lack variation, and I doubt it will be much trouble to get her something she would like.

Sasori considered this. Sakura hadn't complained about anything since she had woken up, but perhaps that was due to her upbringing. He supposed it would not be too much extra effort and he nodded. "Okay."

* * *

Konan came knocking on his door just as he had been about to take a bath. The woman was a rare guest, but Sasori invited her in without question. Konan hesitated before she entered and took a seat on his bed when he offered it to her. She politely declined tea.

Sasori shrugged and sat back down on his work chair. He noticed the bag she was carrying. "Is there anything you need?" He asked curiously. Now that he had sat down, it was very _very_ difficult to not turn back to his messy desk and continue to work on one of his many unfinished side projects.

Konan fiddled with her fingers, then sighed. She turned to the bag and held it up. "I found some old clothes," she said. "They might be a little big, but they should fit her. We can buy her new clothes when you are put on shopping duty, but I think it might be a little dull and unsettling to be stuck in hospital garb until then."

Sasori blinked, gears in his mind turning. "Is this about Sakura?" He finally asked.

Konan blinked like the answer should have been obvious. "Of course," she said, then stood up. "I'll be going now," she said. "I asked Nagato, and he said we can allow her to use the baths as long as she's watched. I have a break tomorrow from noon, so I can help her then. Relay that to her, will you?"

The woman was gone before Sasori could reply. He stared at the door as it was softly closed. "...Sure...?"

* * *

The Akatsuki had a large archive. This was due to the large variety of interest and specialty of the members, the value their organization saw in knowledge and information, their income, and the backing of several other influential groups and organizations.

Sasori flipped over a book on rare plants, remembering how Itachi had acquired it for him when he had voiced his interest; it appeared his clan had a copy in their own library.

While against Itachi joining, once he was actually a member they were more than eager to show their support. Sasori knew it was mainly for public view, to appear united as a proud clan, but he would take it as long as they did not attempt to interfere. If they thought they could control the Akatsuki through their former heir, they were dead wrong. Itachi would not stand for that.

He frowned, then put down the book; he had read it a dozen times over. He reached for a book a little higher up and paused when it was just out of his reach.

Sasori's chakra control was perfect, but he did not want to risk damaging the cover by using it to get the book.

He heard someone chuckle and scowled, refusing to look back. A blue hand appeared above him and he hissed in annoyance when Kisame easily pulled the book from the shelf. His hand automatically came up to block when the man attempted to lightly smack him with it. "I had that," he said.

Kisame chuckled. "Sure," he said agreeably, and that made Sasori want to smack him even more. He did not and, instead, he rolled his eyes, fully intended on turning and leaving.

"Ah, wait!" Kisame called. Sasori paused. The older man crossed his arms and jerked his head towards the book he was holding. "Is that for your girl?"

Sasori frowned and turned around. "For Sakura?" He asked.

Kisame seemed to consider something. "She must be bored out of her mind," he said. "Maybe you could bring her something to do. A book can't be that dangerous, right?"

Sasori glanced down at the one he was holding. Perhaps his friend was not aware of the many ways one could kill using the bookmark string, but he kept that to himself. "You tried to hit me with it," he pointed out drily.

Kisame laughed. "Doubt something like that would kill you," he said. "Think about it, okay?"

Sasori sighed, wondering why everyone deemed it fit to give their two cents about Sakura. "Okay."

* * *

Sasori enjoyed a wide range of pastimes, but his most favorite was probably working on his wooden puppets. It was something he had been doing since he was a kid, and it was also something he was really good at. He did not like selling his works, but he knew that even then people knew of them. Since he had joined the Akatsuki, he had tampered with one or two of his creations to conceal weapons. It was still largely an untested idea, but it was something he had already tested on the field against insignificant opponents and knew could be rather effective once properly polished.

 _Once the whole thing with Orochimaru was over,_ he told himself.

He had been messing around with a joint that had been bothering him for a while when there was a knock. Deidara threw open the door without even waiting for a reply and let himself in like he owned the place. Sasori scowled and turned around to face the intruding blond. "What?"

Deidara grinned and plopped himself down on Sasori's bed. "How are you, Danna?" He asked. "How's Sakura-chan, un?"

Sasori pointedly turned back to his desk. He could feel Deidara rolling his eyes before his partner skipped over to his side and leaned obnoxiously over his shoulder. "Danna~"

Sasori sighed. "What?" He asked. "I am busy, and I'll appreciate it if you could leave me alone while I work."

This time, he got to see the blond roll his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever un," he sang. "Anyways, Danna, the reason I came here today is _not_ to simply allow you the pleasure of my company." He dug into his pocket and pulled out something that easily fit into the palm of his hand. "Look!"

Sasori gave in to his curiosity and leaned in. He realized that the small object was made of clay, and shaped to be a cherry blossom.

"You've got some of that fancy paint here, right?" Deidara asked, looking around. "The paint I keep is meant to be used on works that go bang, so they won't last very long. I thought you could paint it or something. Don't worry, there are no explosives hidden inside." He held out the flower. Sasori took it and carefully turned it around, noting that it was actually a hair clip.

He frowned. "For Sakura?"

Deidara nodded. "Yeah, unless you want it, un." He snickered. "I can make you matching ones if you want."

Sasori rolled his eyes and turned back towards his desk again. Deidara gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder before heading towards the door. "Make sure you give it to her, un!" He called.

Sasori did not grace him with a response and the door closed moments later, signaling his departure. Once the blond's footsteps had faded away, Sasori looked down at the hairclip sitting in his hand. It actually did look really nice.

He sighed, then opened one of his drawers and inspected the first brush he came across. He had just the shade of pink that would suit Sakura.

* * *

A reason Sasori often spent his free time in Sakura's room was not something he liked to admit to out loud but sounded just fine in his head.

He enjoyed Sakura's silent companionship.

Deidara was annoying, Kisame treated him like a kid, and Itachi had the 'I know everything you don't air around him all the time. Others, he did not spend nearly as much time with. Sakura was simply there and he found that, sometimes, that was what he was looking for.

He wondered what she enjoyed, and that led to him seeking out Nagato later that day.

The man paused in his own report writing. "I'm sorry?"

"Isn't there something we can allow Sakura to do?" He repeated. "She sits, she eats, she sleeps. It must be boring."

Nagato frowned thoughtfully and put down his brush. "She is a prisoner here," he reminded him gently. "We cannot risk letting her run around without absolute certainty that she is not a threat."

Sasori did not refute the reasonable response and instead nodded. "I know," he said. "But perhaps I could bring her around the base?" As the words left his mouth he wondered why he hadn't thought of it before. He grew poisonous plants to use on his weapons and that area was highly secure, mainly to stop his immature friends from taking out their frustration with him, after facing defeat of some kind by his hand, on his innocent plants. He doubted Sakura would cause much harm if he asked. He said so.

Nagato blinked. "Why, Sasori, that is a wonderful idea," he said, and Sasori though he heard the sarcasm dripping from the man's tone. "Whatever made you think you need my permission to do such a thing?"

Sasori found it was his turn to blink. He frowned In confusion. "Do I not?" He asked. "As you said, she is a prisoner here."

Nagato sighed. "Right," he said. "But truly, that sounds like a good idea, and will hopefully put her at ease. A change of environment may be good for her."

Sasori nodded. "Thank you," he said.

Nagato stopped him before he could leave. "What brought this up suddenly?" He asked.

Sasori paused for a moment. He could clearly remember how many of his friends had approached him about Sakura. Even Kakuzu had asked about her. Perhaps it was the constant reminders of her existence?

However, he simply shrugged. "Who knows?"

* * *

 **Update~**

 _ **Darque: It's just Sasori sorting out things for now.**_

 **Raven: Soon, though, things will happen. Soon. SOOOOOOOOOOOON**

 _ **Darque: Uhhh, yes, indeed. Soon.**_

 **Raven: I wonder what things will happen.**

 _ **Darque: I wonder as well.**_

 **Raven: You're writing it. You know.**

 _ **Darque: And you're looking over it. You know too.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: =.= What.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	9. Chapter 9

**_Chapter NINE_**

Sasori was used to waking up to pain. His soulmate's broken ribs and shattered fingers had long become alarm clocks, and continuous days of simply waking up to someone's footsteps outside or to Hidan's loud cursing after Kakuzu had kicked him out of bed or to the cries of a bird perched right outside his window were dreams for as long as he could remember.

That was no longer the case, though, and Sasori often found his peaceful awakenings paired with the relief that his soulmate wasn't hurting either. It was different, knowing she was out there and having her right there. He had known this, of course, but there was something inexplainable within him whenever he saw her.

They were one of the few people in the world to have come across one another. When that wasn't the cause for stabbing pain every other hour, Sasori found the thought to be surprisingly comforting. She was the one person out there who could understand him to a level others could not, no matter how close they were, and a sick part of him molded by years of working in a profession where death was a constant threat was delighted by the fact that even if he did die somewhere, unnoticed and never to be found, there would be someone who would know how exactly it had happened. Someone who knew what had killed him and how much it had hurt.

Of course, that was if Sakura did not die before him. Sasori looked up from the papers in front of him. Sakura met his gaze like she had been watching him the entire time, and he forced himself to not turn away. "It will just be a few questions," he told her. "If you're uncomfortable answering them, you can say so."

He left out the part where she may be forced to tell him anyways. He knew the Akatsuki were being lenient on her because she was his Soul mate and because she had yet to show signs of hiding anything, but he did not know how long that would last.

If everything were a tad bit more simple, he would be the cop to her criminal. It wasn't, though, and he was a member of an elite force tasked with jobs out of the police's league, while she was an unwilling subordinate to one of the worst criminals of the generation.

Sakura nodded, and Sasori turned back to his papers.

Both of them could die at any moment, both in and out their line of work. He had made a lot of enemies over the years, and he was sure that Sakura could match, perhaps surpass, his own list of people who might want him dead.

"You are a chakra user." It was not a question, but it was the protocol to make sure.

Sakura nodded easily. "Yes."

"From what we've observed, we have come to the conclusion that your abilities are heavily based on using your chakra to enhance yourself," Sasori said. He could remember the black markings on her skin as she healed herself while unconscious, and the chunks of concrete she had gauged out of walls and the craters she had made on the floor when she had attempted an escape after breaking his wrist.

Sakura nodded again.

"Were any of your abilities results of Orochimaru's experiments?"

Sakura shook her head. "Tests ran on me were usually the effectiveness of drugs. My powers were unique; Orochimaru didn't mess with things he considered good enough."

Sasori noted this down. "Your healing abilities allowed you to heal off the effects of the drugs?" He guessed.

Sakura nodded again and Sasori wrote more things down, but his mind felt worryingly blank. "Just a few more questions," he told her.

Sakura nodded once again and sat patiently as Sasori noted down everything she had said. He had no idea why he couldn't have gotten someone to write down what the girl said while he asked the questions. Rr, even better, someone else could have done the whole thing.

Nagato had said the pinkette's cooperation would earn her freedom throughout the base, though, and while Sakura had not been told this, Sasori knew that she would probably open up to him the most regardless.

"Are your abilities based on chakra control?" He asked. "Or is it a mutation?" He suspected the latter, having never seen markings like hers before, but he would make sure.

"A mutation," Sakura confirmed. "Or that was what I was told."

The experiments found in the Northern Base had been dangerous, but that was mainly because they could not be reasoned with anymore. Sasori did not doubt for a second that Orochimaru kept monsters much more powerful closer to himself. He found himself subconsciously looking at Sakura again as this thought crossed his mind. No one knew the full extent of Sakura's abilities just yet, but she had survived in the snake pit. Her strengths may have played a part in keeping her alive, but Orochimaru's investment in her was probably was a large part of it. She'd have to be special for Orochimaru to take an interest, and there was nothing reassuring them that she was the only one. The girl herself had claimed others like her existed, and knowing more about her could help them prepare for coming fights.

After all, there was a high chance not all of them were like the girl sitting before him.

That thought still ringing in his mind, Sasori frowned at the last question. Nagato had said he didn't have to force the girl, and he knew how there was a large chance Sakura would clam up again if he made her too uncomfortable. The others like her had probably been the closest thing to kin, perhaps even friends, that Sakura had under Orochimaru. He remembered how she had shown concern when he had first brought it up weeks ago, and he did not think demanding information about them in what was sugarcoated but was clearly an interrogation would be the best way to go about it.

"That'll be it for now," he said. Then, like an afterthought, added, "Nagato said I can take you around parts of the base," he said. "Do you want to start at the archives? Or the greenhouse?"

Sakura blinked, as though she hadn't expected something like that, but Sasori didn't think it would take her very long to link the two together. He waited while she glanced between his eyes and the floor before she finally opened her mouth again.

"The greenhouse, please," she said. "I remember you telling me about it."

Sasori nodded, remembering as well. "Don't worry," he said reassuringly. "I can take you to the library afterward."

Someone would come to collect his notes later. He held out his hand without a second thought and the pinkette took it without question. He helped her up and led her towards the door.

* * *

Sakura appeared the happiest since he had first met her when he had led the girl through the corridors. The collar had remained for security measures but it hadn't appeared to bother her at all as she took quick steps to keep up with his slightly larger stride.

Sasori had known the girl was smart. Her situation may have limited her general understanding of society and deprived her of common sense, but that did not mean she was not knowledgeable. She was able to recognize his collection of plants and displayed a vast understanding of each of their properties. In the archives, she had been quick to recognize the pattern in which their books were stored, and had made a beeline for texts on medicine.

He found it a little ironic that her interest lay in the area of healing when she worked under a man known for his kill count and had probably aided him with it.

Sakura seemed to notice his gaze, or rather, had finally decided to acknowledge it, and she looked up. Sasori shook his head and jerked his head in the direction of her book. The girl continued to look at him for a while longer before she cautiously turned back to the words before her.

The silence continued, interrupted only by the soft sound of pages being turned, and Sasori had finally managed to turn his focus onto the text he was reading when Sakura's voice once again cut through his forced concentration.

"Am I the only one here?"

Sasori paused, thinking he knew what she was asking, but wanting to make sure lest he gave her the wrong information. "What?"

Sakura closed her book and placed her hands on the cover. "I wasn't the only one of Orochimaru's pets in the base," she said. "And yet, it feels like I'm the only one here."

Frankly, Sasori was surprised she hadn't asked all this time. "That's because you are," he told her easily. "The others are being held and treated in hospitals created for this, and manned by people specially trained in the area. The better ones seemed to understand simple words, but they all are too dangerous to allow them to roam free."

"Orochimaru-sama called them the failed experiments," Sakura told him. "They were often left to fend for themselves. Most died and rotted in their cells. The better ones were sometimes sent out as cannon fodder." She frowned. "Is that the reason?"

Sasori hesitated, recalling what many of his friends had told him about her lack of knowledge on Soulmates. Despite what some might give as reasons, he knew this was mostly for him. After all, they could have easily handed her over to someone they trusted, like Jiraiya, and the man could have taken care of her while also protecting her from the likes of Danzo, he was sure.

Fortunately, Sakura seemed to take his silence for confusion. "There was-there should have been another one like me," she said. "A boy, who wasn't like the failed experiments."

At this, Sasori sat up. "Like you?" He asked.

Sakura nodded. "I guess you could call us successful experiments. Masterpieces? I'm usually not stationed at the Northern Hideout; that's the boy's domain."

Sasori did not question the sudden barrage of new information. "What does this boy look like?" He asked; he had read through the reports on the recovered experiments several times and knew he would remember if anything stood out.

"He's tall," Sakura said, standing up and raising her hand to show him. "He has orange hair."

Sasori frowned. Most of the experiments had looked half dead if he were being honest. Even Sakura, in her bloody state, had appeared more alive. After all, one needed to be alive, or at least have been alive until moments ago, in order to bleed. If this boy looked half as alive as the pinkette before him did, he was sure his photo would have caught his eye.

"I don't think he was in the list of victims we recovered," he told her.

Sakura observed him for a moment before she slowly nodded. "I thought so," she said. "If he'd been there, you probably wouldn't have made it out alive."

"I thought you said he was like you," Sasori retorted. "Doesn't that mean not an insane monster?"

"He is like me," Sakura insisted. "He is not a monster, he doesn't want to hurt anyone." Her eyes flashed. "He will, though, if he has to."

Sasori put his book aside altogether. "Why are you telling me all this?" He asked curiously. "You were always willing, I suppose, but you've never really volunteered information."

Sakura copied his action and placed her book on top of his on the table. "Because you can help us," she said. "I feel you can help us."

Sasori met Sakura's green eyes. In fiction novels he sometimes indulged in, characters often saw emotion and resolve in the eyes of others. Sasori didn't really understand that, but he supposed the way she did not flinch away from his gaze or look down at the floor like she usually did conveyed how important this was to her. He stood up and could feel Sakura's gaze on him even when he momentarily looked away to push his chair back.

"You're going to need to tell me more in detail," he said. "And I think Nagato would appreciate the information."

Sakura appeared to sink deeper into her chair, eyebrows drawing in a fraction.

"The Akatsuki aim to shut down Orochimaru completely," Sasori told her. "The Snake will be taken in, and he will face judgment for all the crimes he has committed and all the people he has hurt." He held out his hand. "All his victims will be properly mourned for and all the survivors will be given the best possible care so that they can take back even an ounce of their former lives."

"The Northern Hideout was the first step," Sakura said slowly. "There is more?"

Sasori nodded. "In fact, there is a meeting to discuss our next major move in two days. All the data we've had before, as well as all the information we newly gained after the takedown of the Northern Hideout, will be accounted for. Anything you could tell us will aid us."

Sakura bit her lip and continued to frown for a while longer before her hand shot out to take his with a determination that surprised Sasori. "You must help us," she said. "We-none of us wanted this. We don't want to hurt anyone. We-"

Sasori tugged Sakura to her feet, cutting her off. "I know," he said softly. "I promise to do everything I can. I meant it when I told you no one will hurt you here, and I promise none of us want to hurt your friends."

Sakura's hand felt small in his grasp. The girl stood almost a head shorter than him, and with how close they were she had to look up to meet his gaze. He held it until she nodded. "Okay."

Sasori let go and took a step back. "I don't think Nagato will mind an interruption if it's something like this," he said. When he turned towards the door, Sakura immediately followed.

* * *

 **IT'S KINDA LATE SO CHECKING WILL BE DONE LATER SORRY IGNORE MISTAKES FOR NOW TYTY**

 ** _Darque: While I enjoy Sasori doing all the tiptoeing around Sakura cause he doesn't know what the hell he's doing, I NEED SOME ACTION SO SOME ACTIONS I WILL GET._**

 **Raven:...Right...**

 ** _Darque: FLUFFY DAYS ARE MEANT TO BE BROKEN. ONLY THEN DO THE DAYS LOST BECOME ALL THE MORE PRECIOUS AND THE DAYS TO COME ALL THE MORE ANTICIPATED._**

 **Raven:...Uh...Right...**

 ** _Darque: But yeah, Sakura did have a life, as sucky it must have been, before coming to the Akatsuki, and it'll come shit on them all CAUSE THAT'S THE STORY HERE MWAHAHAHA._**

 **Raven:...**

 **Read and Review~**


	10. Chapter 10

**_Chapter TEN_**

It was just as Sasori had thought, and Nagato had his desk cleared the moment he revealed the reason behind his visit with Sakura by his side. The man had been one of the most vocal with his agreement to give Sakura the time to reveal information willingly, for Sasori's sake, but he could see the relief as they made themselves comfortable.

Sasori relayed everything Sakura had told him, with the pinkette nodding from time to time to confirm his words. Nagato did not write anything down but Sasori had no doubt every word coming from his mouth was properly remembered.

"Sasori, I will schedule you and Deidara for the scouting job tomorrow," Nagato said.

"The one along the north border?" Sasori asked, wondering where this had suddenly come from. Missions were usually assigned days in advance, and it was unusual for anyone to be handed one so abruptly.

Nagato nodded. "I know Kakuzu and Hidan were scheduled for it, but I will relay this change to them. Check out the Snake's hideout again. Take Sakura with you."

Sakura's head snapped up at the same time his leader's words registered in his mind. "What?"

Nagato pulled out a file Sasori recognized to be one of many salvaged from Orochimaru's base. "Take Sakura with you and check through the Northern Hideout again," he said. "She is, after all, the one with the most knowledge on the area."

Sasori glanced over at Sakura, gauging her reaction. The pinkette's face had been free of any expression since she had taken a seat before Nagato's desk, and she continued to show no reaction.

"What are you hoping to gain from this?" Sasori asked curiously.

Nagato closed his eyes and linked his hands in front of his face. "We gained tremendous amounts of data from the raid," he said. "The surprise element clearly allowed us to gain information Orochimaru would have otherwise prioritized the deletion of. We will soon be moving onto the next part of this operation." He then turned away from him and fixed his gaze on Sakura. "You, Sakura, are a major trump card we have. Nothing about you has been disclosed to anyone outside of the Akatsuki. I doubt anyone, let alone Orochimaru, even knows if you are dead or alive. However, there is a major problem with using this advantage we have."

Sasori watched his Soulmate slowly raise her head to meet Nagato's gaze. There was a hesitation he always saw about her, but she did not look away. "You don't trust me," she said.

Nagato smiled faintly. "I want to," he admits. He does not say why, but from the way Sasori receives a quick glance tells him enough; it is, again, for him. "But you have been Orochimaru's for a very long time."

Sakura bit her lip. "That is reasonable," she said slowly. "I don't know what else I can do but to tell you that I will do _anything_ to free us."

Nagato nodded. "Show me," he replied. "Carve us a path towards the Snake's takedown."

Sasori saw the way Sakura tilted her head in his direction, met her gaze with his. Something appeared to click in her mind, for she bit down on her lower lip once more before she met Nagato's gaze. "Okay."

Nagato nodded. "Is that alright, Sasori?"

Sasori had noticed something during the times he spent with Sakura. Whenever she talked about her experience under Orochimaru, as rare and brief as they were, she often said 'us' as opposed to 'me' or 'I'. He had a feeling the chains that kept her bound to Orochimaru were threats than endangered those who had been her companions back when she had still been one of the Snake's pets. He didn't know if 'friend' was an appropriate term, considering the circumstances, but he thought it was close enough.

In fact, perhaps they were more.

He could recall how Itachi had once told him the Soulmate bond tied together the lives of two people in a physical manner, and that acted to enhance the emotional connection upon meeting. Perhaps relationships born in the deepest pits of suffering tied people together in ways others did not understand.

People wanted to be understood, after all. That was why Soulmates was a concept that dictated the lives of some, and how could one who had suffered a life of servitude as a victim of kidnapping and human experimentation hope to find understanding from someone who had lived a completely different life?

Images of the countless numbers of scars that had marred his body at one point or another flashed before his eyes. The scars faded as the wounds on the Soulmate faded, and Sasori now knew why his had vanished much faster compared to the scars his friends shared with their Soulmates. Still, there had to be _something_ in the moments where they had shared the pain, right?

He glanced over at his Soulmate who was looking expectantly at him, and he remembered that Nagato had asked him a question. "Understood," he said.

Sakura was bound to others with a bond forged through years of suffering together. He had hurt with her too, but he knew it wasn't the same. He wondered if what he had with her was enough.

Nagato did not seem to notice his dilemma, and he nodded. "I trust you can relay the plan to Deidara?" He asked. "I am aware the notice is short, but you have the rest of the day to prepare and since we are no longer to lay low you will probably be able to arrive at the destination before the sun completely sets. There is a slight chance Orochimaru's men might be lingering, but I highly doubt it. Regardless, Deidara can fly you all there so there is no risk of Sakura being seen."

Sasori nodded, glad there was something for him to focus on. "Especially with the way we followed up the invasion with such a large scale search," he pointed out. "Even if the operation wasn't made public, people are sure to notice _something_. The Snake probably won't risk anything that might have him traced."

"Even if you do come across his men, the hideout is so isolated there is no risk in engaging in combat. You and Deidara are capable of taking down anyone you may come across, and I doubt Sakura will have problems protecting herself."

"We'll just have to eliminate any enemies we come across," Sasori said easily.

"You want to keep my survival a secret, and yet you are sending me outside the walls of your base," Sakura said slowly.

"Keeping your fate unknown is largely precaution," Nagato told her. "We have no way to know just how much value your hold within Orochimaru's twisted mind and there is no reason to recklessly attempt to find out. However, risks are also necessary. Our goal is to bring down Orochimaru, and while it is preferred we do it quietly and without fuss, we can only hope for the best and prepare for the worst. We cannot attempt to avoid all problems before they occur, we must eliminate them as we come across them. Problems are a part of the process, after all."

Sakura nodded.

"If there anything we should know of before we commence this mission?" Nagato asked.

Sasori watched the way Sakura rubbed at her wrist. She was nervous.

"You said no one knows of my fate," she said after a moment. "That is probably wrong."

Sasori narrowed his eyes. "Why do you say that?" He asked slowly.

Sakura did not reply for a while. "It doesn't matter, I think," she finally said.

"It will matter if this knowledge sabotages our plans," Nagato said.

"Orochimaru will not find out," Sakura said, and a hand slowly moved up to settle above her heart. "This knowledge will do nothing but bring relief to those who care, and they will not sell me out."

Sasori glanced over at Nagato, who seemed to be deep in thought. If she were trying to deceive them, there was no reason for Sakura to tell them this, and if not, there was no reason for her to lie about it.

"We had a way of keeping track of one another," Sakura explained. "But that contact was lost sometime during the invasion."

"So essentially, no one knows," Sasori concluded.

The edge of Sakura's mouth twitched, almost as though she were about to smile. "I guess so."

"What does that mean for us?" Nagato asked patiently.

"Nothing much, honestly," Sakura admitted. "But, you may find more help within Orochimaru's labs than you may think."

In that moment, Sasori understood one thing. Just like Nagato did not fully trust Sakura yet, Sakura did not trust them with her former companions either, and just like how Nagato was giving Sakura a chance to play a role to build the trust, she was giving them a chance to gain hers.

Apart from the snippets they were given, they would not receive any more information about those she considered important to her unless Sasori could prove that his words from before were true. Still, he wondered, what did vocal promises of protection mean to a girl who had been suffering her entire life?

Sakura dropped her hand from her chest to hang loosely by her side. "We don't want to hurt anyone-"

Sasori knew those words-"-but you will if you must," and he found himself completing the sentence he had heard before.

Sakura turned to him, eyes a little wider than usual, but she nodded firmly. "We will if we must," she agreed.

* * *

Sakura did not complain when Sasori told her to wait for him in his room while he hunted down Deidara; he was not in the mood to face baseless taunting from the blond, and he knew that having Sakura with him would simply give his friend more material to work with. He walked her back and sat her down on his bed before he headed out towards his partner's room.

With Sakura's soft footsteps no longer chasing him like a shadow, Sasori found that he could think.

Sakura did not trust him. He knew it was to be expected, that it was a good, reasonable and cautious reaction on her part.

The childish part of him did not care. It thought it was unfair.

The Soulmate bond only connected physical pain; Sasori had no way of knowing if the girl was as emotionally taxed as he was. She did not know of their bond, so she probably wasn't. Or did she feel something, just as he did, even if she didn't know where exactly the feelings originated from?

In fact, why did he feel compelled to take care of the girl? Was it the bond forcefully making him feel the need to protect his Soulmate? Was it the pressure from all his friends, who seemed adamant on him being by her side whenever he had the time?

Regardless, he decided that he did not appreciate being forced to take care of a girl. The Soulmate bond itself was one major headache. He wondered why people thought it was a nice idea. Romantic, he had often heard. It allowed two people to understand each other in ways no one else could ever hope to.

Sasori could do without such understandings just fine. After all, he didn't think there was anything romantic about not knowing if anything he felt for someone was genuine, or was compelled by some unknown force.

He had a feeling most of the opinions came from people who had never met their Soulmates. They must have been written by those who did not understand the pain of being stabbed multiple times a day. He knew his case was special, and Sakura was an extreme example. but the idea of it did not change.

The bond relayed pain because somewhere, one's Soulmate had been _hurt._ Sometimes, he thought people forgot that.

* * *

 _ **Darque: I made finishing touches to this chapter on a desktop at school, while my teacher was giving a lecture or something.**_

 **Raven: =.=**

 _ **Darque: Eyy, it's no problem, it's a Japanese Uni and the lesson was English for dummies.**_

 **Raven: I...see.**

 _ **Darque: Honestly, it's so boring, I want to cry.**_

 **Raven: Well...good luck?**

 _ **(Darque: I'm sorry if this chapter has any errors despite my best efforts to correct any mistakes I came across.)**_

 **(Raven: What O.O You usually don't** **apologize** **for stuff like that; are you okay?)**

 _ **(Darque: Well, you know, I talked about final touches in this Authors Note, and people will definitely go 'Well if you made finishing touches, why are there still stupid mistakes?' It's just in case, really.)**_

 **(Raven: =.=)**

 **Read and Review~**


	11. Chapter 11

**_Chapter ELEVEN_**

Deidara seemed all for their sudden patrol, which had Sasori immediately narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

Deidara hated anything that required him to do work but did not involve him exploding things, and it only took him another second to remember that Deidara had been pestering him for a meeting with Sakura since the day she had woken up. For the past month, Sasori had managed to keep the two apart, not because he thought his friend would do the girl harm, but simply because it was fun to watch him get more and more annoyed as he gave increasingly stupid reasons as to why he could not allow the two of them to meet.

"Sakura woke up from a nightmare this morning where she was trapped in a room with yellow everything, and she says she doesn't want to see anything relatively yellow today," he had told him just that morning.

Deidara did not push the issue, and for that Sasori was grateful. It was times like this when he was reminded just why he tolerated the blond despite his many annoying qualities.

Now, though, he had no choice. It appeared his partner was doing his best not to act overly smug about it, but he was practically bouncing on his heels as they made their way through the base.

Deidara turned to him curiously when they walked right past Sakura's medical room. "Where are you going, Danna?"

"Sakura is not here," he said. He had continued walking when Deidara had stopped, and his partner hurried over to catch up with him.

"Where is she then?"

Sasori sighed. "We are going there right now," he said with forced patience. "You will see when we get there."

Deidara simply rolled his eyes and fell into steps with him again.

Sasori led them right up to his door and knocked. Deidara opened his mouth, eyes wide, and he shushed him with a sharp gesture of his hand. "Sakura?"

There was movement from within, clothes rustling and footsteps. The door opened and Sakura poked her head out warily.

Sasori stepped in front of Deidara when the blond tried to wave dramatically. "Sakura, this is Deidara, my partner, " he told her. "I thought I should introduce you since we _are_ heading out on a job together tomorrow."

Sasori sighed when Deidara grabbed him by his arm and tried to push him aside. "Sakura-chan!" He exclaimed.

Sasori watched his Soulmate's eyes widen in surprise, and when he finally stepped aside because Deidara had begun jabbing him between his ribs she swung the door until it was almost closed. Deidara paused.

Sasori sighed again and pushed the blond aside. "Can we come in?"

He had no idea why he was asking; this was his own room. Sakura nodded, and slowly stepped aside. He grabbed Deidara by the back of his shirt when he tried to rush in. "Behave," he hissed.

Deidara nodded and Sakura darted back to where she had been sitting, on his bed, before they had arrived. They had grabbed a few books for her to read two days ago and she appeared to have been flipping through something on chakra and the human brain. Sasori carefully let go of the blond and Deidara straightened his collar before he slowly approached the bed. He watched the younger watch Sakura, who stared right back before something seemed to click in the male's mind and he grinned. "Hi, Sakura-chan," he said, with surprising calmness. "It's nice to finally meet you, un."

Sakura glanced over at Sasori from the corner of her eye and he nodded. Sakura bit her lip and nodded. "Nice to meet you," she replied.

Deidara grinned, then turned and adjusted Sasori's work chair so that it was facing her and plopped himself down onto it. Sasori scowled, then moved over towards his bed. Sakura shifted to make room for him and after he was comfortable he twisted around and piled Sakura's books onto the nightstand. Sakura passed him the last few and Sasori reached for a scrap piece of paper. He placed it into the open page of the girl's current read in lieu of a bookmark before putting it on top. "Enjoying it?" He asked.

Sakura nodded. "Yes."

Sasori leaned back against the headboard and crossed his arms. "That's good."

He ignored the look Deidara was shooting him. "Like I said, this is Deidara. He's an idiot, but he means no harm."

Sakura's soft voice cut through the annoyed complaint Deidara looked like he had on the tip of his tongue. "The idiot outside the door," she said.

Sasori recalled how he had made that comment a while ago and had to suppress a smile. "Yes."

Deidara was openly gaping at them now and Sasori suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. "Deidara, as you already know, this is Sakura."

There was an awkward silence before Deidara cleared his throat "Right, well, the job..."

Sasori hummed in agreement, then reached for the mission file Nagato had handed him. "It's simple in theory," he said. "Scout the area, see if we missed anything..."

"Kill any Snake men we find, don't get caught by Danzo and his creeps?" Deidara added.

Sasori nodded.

"Simple in theory, un," the blond muttered.

* * *

The next morning, Sasori fixed a collar around Sakura's neck. It was not a chakra suppressant, but it alerted them if she moved a certain distance from them, and shocked her with chakra, enough to knock her out, if she tried to remove it.

Personally, Sasori thought Sakura escaping was less probably than Deidara enjoying writing a report, but protocol was protocol and he kept the thought to himself.

Sakura appeared mildly interested when Deidara showed her one of his small clay birds, and it turned into something close to fascination when he proceeded to turn it into a huge bird that flapped its wings. Deidara and Sasori hopped onto it, long used to this method of travel, and when Sakura remained rooted to her spot Sasori offered her his hand, then pulled her up beside him. "You won't fall," he told her.

Sakura nodded slowly, and the look of wonder returned to her eyes when the clay creation took to the sky.

Deidara took them high into the clouds, to both remain unseen and undetected by chakra sensors. Sasori had a feeling Sakura would enjoy looking over the land from overhead, but that was not something they could risk right now.

"Is chakra keeping us up?" She asked.

Deidara's eyes gleamed. "Not really, un," he said. "It's chakra that is causing the bird to move, but the clay structure itself is made so that it can fly. The wings are based on that of real birds and are shaped so that they can carry the weight. _Then_ my chakra makes them flap."

Deidara then launched into a much more detailed explanation about weight, bird wings, and sculpting techniques. Sasori, having been subjected to one of those on many occasions, tuned him out. Sakura looked interested, but she was trained in the are of infiltration, so faking emotions must be a part of her skillset and he didn't really know what to think. He then decided that his blond friend probably deserved some credit; if there was one thing Deidara knew into detail, it was about his clay works. He had found a way to directly incorporate his hobbies with his chakra abilities, and Sasori had seen, many times, how his partner calculated clay mass and amount of chakra.

Now, if only this intellect could be used for other things as well.

Deidara cut himself off in the middle of his ramble. "Wait-Sakura-chan, are you interested in my technique? "

"She isn't," Sasori found himself saying.

Deidara shot him a dirty look, but Sasori was watching Sakura. "Are you?" He asked.

Sakura frowned. She ran a hand over the clay, watching her fingers shift as the bird's wings flapped. "I've been told that chakra has different properties depending on each person," she said slowly. "Is it possible to train yourself to pick up a new skill?"

Deidara frowned and turned towards him. Sasori shook his head. "No," he said carefully. "Though there are cases of chakra mutations being passed down genetically."

Sakura looked thoughtful. "Deidara-san's mutation allows him to explode structures he pushes chakra into," she said. "What about you, Sasori?"

Deidara jumped in before he could say anything. "Danna is a special case where he has no specialty ability, not because he's unlucky, but because his control is so good it can't adapt to a single form. In a way, his control is so good he doesn't need a special side effect to stand toe to toe with those of us who have one. He can literally control his chakra with a thought."

The blond sounded so proud like he were the one blessed with perfect control, and Sasori felt the tips of his ears burning.

Sakura turned to look at him, eyes wide with wonder.

"It's not that impressive," he muttered. "Besides, your chakra mutation appears rather effective as well."

Deidara turned towards Sakura as well, and Sasori wondered if he were a little too obvious, but moments later the pinkette closed her eyes. "It certainly kept me alive," she said. "My chakra control is relatively good as well. I can channel it to anywhere within my body, and I can use it to strengthen my limbs."

"That's how you broke the wall," Sasori noted.

Sakura nodded. "When I say anywhere, I really do mean anywhere." She pointed at her head. "I can affect the speed at which my body heals damage. A sign of that is the black lines you probably saw."

"Is that automatic?" Deidara asked. "Even when you're unconscious?"

Sakura nodded again. "Most of the time."

Deidara looked impressed all over again, and Sasori had to agree. If anything, he was sure abilities like Sakura's were rare. People used their chakra at will, and he had never heard of chakra doing anything without someone commanding it to. He didn't have time to address it though, because Deidara's bird chose that exact moment to break through the clouds.

Sasori leaned over and he vaguely recognized the borderlines of their lands. "Orochimaru's former base is a little off in that direction." He pointed. "If we continue at the pace we are currently traveling at, we'll get there just past noon."

Sakura leaned forward eagerly as well and Sasori remembered the girl had been limited in her freedom. He scooted to the side and held out his hand. "Come here." The girl did so without much further prompting and Sasori pointed out towards the distance. "In that direction, we have the Land of the Samurai, and that way is the ruins of what was once considered to be a line of people directly descendant from the gods."

Sakura nodded. "Are you on tense terms?" She asked. "The lands are vast, are these patrols to reinforce territory?"

"Not really," Deidara replied. "We don't really interact, honestly, just the leaders exchanging letters and whatnot when bad things happen."

"This Orochimaru case has actually been raised a few times," Sasori said. "The Snake is no longer a part of the Elemental Nation, and his threat goes beyond our borders."

They continued along the path they had traveled through the first time around. The village that had acted as their temporary base was barely visible in the distance. "Have you read the files?" He asked his partner.

Deidara nodded, a rare moment of seriousness after an entire morning of boundless energy and grins. "Of course, un."

Sasori hummed. "The village has been alerted, we will be setting up base there again."

* * *

 **(Late) Update, friends!**

 _ **Darque: Ye, stuff happened.**_

 **Raven: Yeah. We were busy. Sorry about that.**

 _ **Darque: Sorry.**_

 **Raven: More characters will be introduced soon, I think. It's in the plan somewhere, right?**

 _ **Darque: Yeah. I have a few scenes written down.**_

 **Raven: Ooooo. Also, if any of you have a discord, we made a server for story updates, story ideas, polls, and the likes. If you're interested, ca** **tch us a** **t** ** _/bHw6Ddh_**

 **Read and Review~**


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter TWELVE**_

On second thought, Sasori could understand the surprised look Deidara sent his way when Sakura completely dismissed the room assigned to her as she followed him into his.

Honestly, he was more surprised at his own willingness to share his room; he had never been one to like people near him as he slept, and he had kicked out Deidara on more than one occasion, though that had been more to annoy the blond than anything else.

However, having Sakura in his room felt right. Bitterness welled up within him when he thought that perhaps it was all due to the Soulmate bond and whatever came with it, but he had a feeling that even if he and Sakura were not Soulmates, even if the mess of a world had not thrown them together in the situation they were currently in, and they had not been weighed down by the burdens they both carried, he could have come to like the girl.

Perhaps she was quiet because the words had been beaten out of her, and he had no way of knowing what she might have been like had Orochimaru not broken the girl that could have been. Still, as he watched the girl climb onto the bed and settle herself in a position he had become familiar with, with her back against the corner between the wall and headboard, he decided that, for not, it did not bother him at all.

Sakura looked up at him and when he pulled out the book he had brought for her, her eyes lit up. He stifled a laugh because he had no idea what he found funny as he passed it to her. "I'm going to go discuss the mission with Deidara," he said. "I will be next door."

The 'you know where to find me' was left unsaid, but Sakura nodded. "Okay," she said.

Sasori grabbed his files from his bag and tossed it onto the bed, then left the pinkette to her reading.

Deidara was lazing around on his own bed when he threw the door open.

"You always complain when I don't knock before entering, Danna." The blond sat up and watched him make himself comfortable on one of the chairs.

Sasori eyed him blankly. "I did knock."

Deidara rolled his eyes. "I didn't say you could enter."

"Would you have sent me away?"

"I guess not." Deidara threw his hands up. "You know, this is why you have so little friends. If you don't do something about your personality, Sakura-chan might come to not like you, un."

Sasori impatiently tapped his foot against the floor. "Are you done?" He asked.

"Right!" Deidara's grin widened. "You're keeping your girl waiting."

"She is reading." Sasori ran a hand through his hair. "She knows where I am."

Deidara tapped his chin in thought, eyes narrowing. "Huh."

Sasori scowled. "What?" He asked.

"Nothing!" Deidara rolled over on his bed and grabbed his pouch. "So, the mission?"

Sasori nodded. "Yes, the mission."

* * *

Zetsu had continued to keep an eye on the hideout even after they had closed it down, and Sasori trusted the man when he said there had been no moves from Orochimaru's side since. Zetsu might be a little strange, but his abilities were unparalleled when it came to his area of expertise.

"Unless we're really unlucky, we should not be coming across any enemies," he said thoughtfully. Still, he checked his weapons a few times before he placed them on himself.

Sakura watched him, then stared at the knife he held out towards her.

"I...do not use knives often," she finally said.

"Can you use them?" Sasori jerked his head in her direction. "Those straps on your thighs are weapon holders."

Sakura nodded. "I often carried around more medicine and poisons than I did blades. Knives are not my first choice of weaponry, but yes, I can use them."

Sasori shrugged. "Then I see no harm in carrying one."

Sakura hesitated for a second longer, then took it. Sasori passed her an entire cloth scroll holding a little over half a dozen knives, then turned back to his own equipment as Sakura slipped the rest of them into place.

"That was not one," she noted.

Sasori scoffed. "Hush."

He caught the small smile on Sakura's face as she fixed her pouch into place. The girl had been lent their standard uniform, but even the smallest size dug out from the deepest ends of their storage room appeared a little too big on her. Konan rarely stepped out of the base during operations and they had never had a need for a female version of their outdoor clothing.

Sasori's own shirt was a small, but compared to that Sakura's would probably have to be at least an extra small.

There was a knock at the door, and Sasori checked to make sure Sakura was ready before they both stood up. Deidara stepped aside to let them out of their room. "Good morning, un."

"Good morning," Sakura replied politely.

Sasori eyed the two for a moment before he sighed. "Good morning."

Deidara grinned. "Ready to go?"

"Just lead the way."

* * *

Even cleaned out and empty, the Northern hideout simply felt wrong. Even Deidara's chattering died away as they neared the structure now no longer hidden, and despite it having been days, the metallic stench of blood, as well as the sharp smell of medicine, appeared to have been deeply embedded into the concrete walls and floor, for he could still smell it.

The only one who appeared to relax as they approached was Sakura.

All the locks and security measures had been deactivated, but Sakura placed her hand against a chakra scanner against the door. There was an unreadable expression on her face as she eyed the machine for a while before she stepped through the entrance.

He glanced towards his partner when Sakura began walking confidently through the corridor. She ignored the room closer to the entrance, where their men had cleared out all the important files.

Deidara glanced over towards the small temporary HQ set up in one of the bigger rooms. "Should we stop her, un?"

Most of the men had cleared out after inspection had finished, but a few had stayed behind. Sasori could see a few of them looking uneasily at Sakura, no doubt recognizing her, but no one made a move to stop her.

Sasori frowned as Sakura's steps quickened. "Sakura."

The pinkette stopped and turned around. "Yes?"

Sasori sighed. "Wait a moment."

Sakura bit her lip but nodded. Sasori turned towards the section leader, who handed him the latest notes of the base. On the top of the stack was a map much more detailed than the one they had first made.

They were then given a rough run-through of new findings and whatnot, and Sasori listened halfheartedly, an eye on the papers and the other on Sakura, who looked half ready to bolt deeper into the hideout by herself.

"Okay."

The moment the word had left his lips, Sakura was turned back towards the corridor.

The two of them followed her, who was almost in a trance-like state. She flew down the stairs, towards the isolated room they had found her in. The bodies had been cleared, the experiments had been taken to specialized facilities, and everything had been sterilized three times over. Still, Sakura appeared to be able to see things only he could see, and he was confused the first few times she stepped unnaturally wide or made a sharp stride to the side.

"Experiment five six four eight died two weeks before his body was cleared out," Sakura said softly, suddenly. "He was alive when he was returned to his cage, but he collapsed the moment he was let go." She took another strange step. "His arm hung out between the bars. There were no rules, but no one stepped on the dead ones."

The realization hit him seconds before it hit Deidara, and he hurriedly jammed his elbow into his partner's ribs when the blond opened his mouth, eyes wide.

Deidara was not a bad guy, per se, but he tended to blurt out the conclusions he came to.

He ignored his partner's loud complaint as he continued to watch Sakura's back. "Where are we going?" He asked softly.

Sakura pointed towards the end of the corridor, where he had first laid his eyes on her bloody, broken form. "I read the files," she said. "It said all important things were taken back to your headquarters, so I'm assuming things like clothes were left behind." She tugged at the sleeves of her shirt as though to emphasize how big it was.

Sasori turned to Deidara, who fished out one of the files from his pouch, then flipped through the pages. "Clothes were untouched," he confirmed. "They should be exactly where they used to be in her room."

Sasori felt a complaint rising to his lips at 'her room' because a room where one was restrained and tortured to death was definitely not 'their room', but he held his tongue.

Sakura herself did not appear all that bothered. She hesitated right before the door, as though unsure if it would open, before she shoved it. The room had also been cleaned, though the restraints still remained, and the pinkette barely spared them a second glance. Sasori glanced over at the files Deidara was holding and watched his Soulmate make a beeline towards one of the cabinets, where he noticed stacks of haphazardly folded clothes. He tried to remember if he had seen them the first time.

To be fair, the first time around, he felt like he was dying and his Soulmate was actually dying and blood covered everything in the room.

Sakura grabbed both stacks of what looked like the exactly same outfit. Sasori wordlessly took them from her when she looked down at herself wondering how to hold them. He stuffed them into his own bag. "Anything else?"

Sakura shook her head. "I never had much, to begin with." She held out her hand. "Can I see the map?"

Deidara handed it over and the pinkette scanned her eyes over it. She frowned. "This is this floor?"

Deidara nodded. "Is something wrong?"

"There's supposed to be a room here." Sakura pointed on the map and showed it to them.

"So it's a room." Deidara hummed to himself.

Sasori tried to remember what he had been told during the briefing. "This end of the corridor was blocked off by bones." He watched Sakura's face carefully for a reaction of any sort. "Does that ring any bells?"

"Bones?" Sakura's frown deepened. "Can I see?"

Deidara glanced over towards him as well, and Sasori nodded. "Why not?"

Sakura spun on her heels and rushed out of the room. The room she had referred to lay on the other end of the floor. The corridor was just too dimly lit to be able to see the other end, but when they were close enough to see it, Sasori confirmed the sight himself.

Tests had confirmed that the blockade was indeed created by bones, and he would bet his left arm that whoever had created it was a chakra user as well.

Sakura ran a finger over the white structure. "There is a room, just like mine, behind this," she said. "Can I break this down?"

"It was too hard to break," Deidara told her. "Explosives couldn't be used because we worried it might bring the whole place down."

"It matters little," Sakura said dismissively. "It's as furnished as mine was." She pressed her forehead against the bone. "He must have come to break him out. These are here just to buy time."

"And this 'he' did not come for you?" Sasori asked.

Sakura shrugged. "You came my way first," she reminded him. "Perhaps the commotion bought him enough time to get out."

"And we don't get to know who this 'he' is?" Deidara asked.

Sakura turned around to face them. "Maybe," she said.

Deidara rolled his eyes in exasperation. "So, Danna, what do you think?" He knocked on the barricade.

"Don't bring the place down," he muttered.

Sakura nodded, then held out her hands. "The person who made this was a companion of mine back when I was with Orochimaru," she said. "Our chakras were entuned to one another, so it should not be too hard." She placed them, palm-fist, against the bone structure. There was a surge of chakra and Sasori could feel it traveling through the barricade, as well as through the floor and walls. A second one followed moments after, then a third, and cracks snaked from where Sakura's hand were toughing the structure, and spread like spiderwebs. Then, the bones simultaneously shattered.

Sakura stepped forward, and the smaller bone shards easily broke under her feet. Just as she had said, the corridor beyond was identical to the one leading towards Sakura's room. The pinkette made her way through, breaking the bone barricade whenever it blocked too much of the path to advance. She opened the door at the end and looked around. Sasori glanced at the large hole on the ground. "Where's that lead?"

Sakura leaned over it, then crouched down. She reached out and brought whatever had caught on her finger closer to her eyes. "Probably a hole somewhere far out," she said. "It won't be on any maps because this was made during the escape." Sakura rubbed her fingers together, and Sasori saw small specks of something fall towards the ground. It caught a wind that did not exist and swirled around on the ground.

Perhaps there was a draught coming from the hole.

"Well, I guess we can write this down, un," Deidara noted. He moved towards the door and Sasori followed.

"Are you done here?" He asked Sakura.

The girl nodded. She stood up, eyes still fixated on the dust. She kicked it softly with her foot, sending the specks flying into the air again. "Yes."

* * *

 _ **Darque: Hi...hi.**_

 **Raven: THE NEXT CHAPTER IS ALMOST 95% WRITTEN PLEASE DON'T BE MAD.**

 _ **Darque: WHAT HE SAID.**_

 **READ AND REVIEW~**


	13. Chapter 13

**_Chapter THIRTEEN_**

Sakura continued to supply small pieces of information Sasori and Deidara would have already been aware of had they properly read through the files, but there was not much else they did not know.

"Should we get the other end of the large hole checked out?" Deidara asked.

Sasori glanced over at Sakura, who once again looked lost in her own world. He sighed. "If we put it down in the report, I'm sure someone will be assigned to check it out."

"True, un."

Sakura was fingering at something on the ground. He watched as she scooped at whatever it was with her hands and watched the specks fall back onto the ground between her fingers.

"Aren't you going to stop her?"

Sasori turned to look at his partner. "What?"

Deidara shrugged, a grin on his face. "She's going to be coming back to your room," he reminded him. "You get all prissy when I treck mud onto your floors."

Sasori realized the blond was talking about the dirt. He looked at Sakura again. "She can wash her hands," he muttered.

Deidara's grin widened, but Sasori pretended not to see it.

* * *

They departed from the base later that day and arrived at the headquarters before the sun had fully set. A messenger was waiting for them at the gates, no doubt having been alerted of their return by the pieces of Konan's paper which all members kept on their person.

"Leader requests your presence in his office as soon as possible," they were told.

Sasori thanked the man and dismissed him. The three of them decided to make a quick detour to their rooms to at least change. He moved into the bathroom before doing so because Sakura appeared to have no qualms with stripping out of her own dirty clothes in the middle of the room. He listened for the sound of clothes dropping onto the ground and waited a while longer, just to be safe, before he exited.

Her casual, non-outdoor clothes were more suited to her size, or rather, did not appear to bother her as much. They had been Konan's, after all. She straightened the shirt and ran her hands through her hair before turning back towards him.

Sasori eyed the stack of clothes the girl had grabbed at the hideout, which all appeared to have been specially made for outdoors and missions, and he wondered if she had ever owned a casual piece of clothing before. He informed Sakura on where she could get her clothes cleaned, then suggested she simply leave it with his pile, since he had planned on sending out his own washing after he took a bath later that day anyways.

"Either way you're going to have to sit in those clothes for a while longer."

Sakura shrugged and hugged the clothes she had taken from the hideout closer to herself. "That's okay."

Sasori simply nodded. He held open the door for the girl, and the two of them began making their way back up towards Nagato's office. As they approached, Sasori heard his partner's voice and knew he was already there. He could hear Konan scolding Deidara for tracking dirt into the base and the blond frantically trying to explain that bone shards had rained down on them and that it was probably that. He rolled his eyes and turned towards Sakura, a snarky comment on the tip of his tongue, and blinked when he found her looking right at him, as though she too had turned to gauge his reaction. Sakura was the first to avert her eyes and he felt a sudden surge of satisfaction.

The girl might not know how deep the bond between them ran, but it was reassuring to know that he, too, was able to have some effect on her.

"Let's go?" He asked.

Sakura nodded. "Yes."

Sasori knocked, opened the door, gestured for her to go first, then closed the door behind him.

* * *

Not all of the Akatsuki were present in the room, but Nagato, Yahiko and Konan were all there. Deidara dramatically gestured for Sasori and Sakura to enter before allowing the door to close behind himself. Nagato gestured to the empty chairs and Sasori made sure Sakura was seated before he took a seat beside her.

"Welcome back," Yahiko began. "I trust you ran into no problems?"

Sasori shrugged. "We ran into none of Oroxhimari's men," he said. "No signs any of them returned to the base either."

Yahiko nodded and shared a glance with Nagato.

Nagato turned to Sakura. "Is there anything you would like to share with us?" He asked gently.

Sakura seemed to contemplate things for a moment before she lowered her head. "I am, was, usually stationed elsewhere. The Nothern hideout was ruled, I guess you could say, by someone else. I just happened to be there when you took it down."

Nagato glanced up at Konan. "Could you identify your base for us?"

Konan spread a map out on the table and Sasori recognized all their current intel on Orochimaru's strongholds neatly mapped out. There was a red cross over where the Northern base had been. Sakura leaned forward and her hand hovered over it. "Mine," she said and placed a finger on the paper.

Nagato hummed. "The South is a little down on our list of priorities," he said. "But your knowledge on it would become useful when the time comes."

Sakura nodded. "That makes sense. The North was probably the worst of it. I'll tell you everything I know," she promised.

"Anything else?"

"There were no signs of Orochimaru's men and there were no reports of them from any of the patrols either," Sasori repeated. "The clean up of the base should end within the next four days anyway."

Nagato leaned back, looking pleased. "That'll be all for today," he said.

"We expect the written report s soon as possible," Konan said, and Deidara made a face.

"Of course," Sasori said. "If that's all..." he stood up and Sakura followed without a second thought.

"Oh, Sasori!"

He turned around to face Konan. "Yes?"

"We've put in a few off days for you," she said. "Why don't you show Sakura around the base more properly? I'm afraid we can't allow her outside the base yet." Konan looked apologetic.

Sakuta shrugged. "I don't mind." She turned to him and Sasori nodded.

"Sounds good."

Deira raised a hand. "How about me, un?"

Konan blinked. "I guess you'll be off by default, your partner being off and all."

"Wow, am I an extra? Thanks, un."

Konan laughed. "Enjoy it while you can."

Deidara waved over his shoulder as Sasori led Sakura out of the office. Once outside, Sasori turned to Sakura. "Dinner first?"

Sakura nodded.

"Where're you eating?" Deira asked eagerly. "Can I join?"

"No," Sasori said immediately. When Sakura blinked in surprise, he turned to her. "He's annoying," he explained.

Sakura's lips twitched and she ducked her head. Sasori could swear she was laughing.

"Hey!"

Sasori ignored his friend as he led the way towards the dining hall. "Let's grab something to eat, then retreat to my room," he said. "We can have the clothes sent out for cleaning; they'll probably be done by tomorrow night."

Sakura's eyes brightened and she nodded eagerly. "Okay."

"Are you ignoring me, un?"

"I think Itachi'll have stored the leftovers from last night in the fridge; he usually does."

"I don't mind."

"HEY! DON'T. IGNORE. ME. UN!"

Sasori pushed through doing just that and was relatively amused when Sakura seemed willing to go with it. She did look uneasy as he closed the dining-room door behind himself and in Deidara's face, but he knew that his partner was acting up for the sake of acting up and the most retaliation he would get was extra explosives in his bombs the next time they sparred.

"Don't worry," he said. "He isn't really angry."

Sakura turned away from the door to look at him, and she nodded after a while. "Oh."

He raided the fridge, pleased to see that someone had, indeed, left last night's leftovers. He grabbed the containers and heated them up while he grabbed two sets of bowls, utensils, and water. Sakura took them from him when he held them up and he ran chakra to his hands to pick up the now hot boxes of food. He flicked a finger to send out chakra strings, opening the door again, and they made their way back to his room in comfortable silence.

"You heard Konan," he said after a while. "I have no missions for the next few days. I know you left the base just earlier, but being stuck inside in general is probably rather boring. There is an open area where we train and while I am unable to undo your chakra restraints, it still is somewhere you can stretch your legs. Perhaps find someone to spar with, even."

Sakura looked rather interested and Sasori felt himself smirking. "I will take you after we eat."

The pinkette nodded eagerly.

* * *

When Sasori and Sakura arrive at the training clearing Hidan and Kakuzu are already there, beating the crap out of each other. Sakura paused to stare in what he suspected to be morbid fascination as the two men ignored what clearly appeared to be fatal injuries as they dance around each other.

Finally, after a while, they broke apart, glaring and panting. Hidan was letting out a string of curses and Kakuzu looked less than impressed, eyes narrowed and fingers clenching.

"They're always like that," Sasori said. "At each other's throats."

Sakura tore her gaze away from them. "Are they truly immortal?"

Sasori couldn't quite remember if he had been the one to tell her that. Perhaps she had known from one of the files Orochimaru surely kept on them. "They're zombies," he told her. "Or cockroaches. You don't really know if they're killable, and just when you think they're dead they come crawling back."

" _I can hear you bastard!"_

"I find the thought of being on the same level as this idiot honestly offending, Sasori, and I request you take back your statement."

Sasori rolled his eyes in the direction of the zombie duo. Sakura looked thoughtful, and she turned back to him. "The strings you made earlier," she said. "How did you do that?"

Sasori blinked. He thought back to how he had used chakra strings to open the door. "This?" He held up a finger and created a chakra string. It shot out, wrapped around a small rock a little away, and brought it back to him.

Sakura nodded. "I assume your chakra works outwards," she said. "My chakra mostly works inside of me." She paused, hand instinctively going up to her collar, and Sasori tried to look anywhere but at it. Fortunately, Sakura seemed to shrug it off. "And I was curious."

"It feels like an extension of my limbs," he explained. "When you say your chakra works inside of you...?"

"My healing and enhanced strength come from me channelling my chakra to places around my body," Sakura replied. "When I punch things, that chakra is transferred as force into the object I hit. Still, it's not exactly the same as being able to command chakra into a visible, almost physical form.

Sasori leaned in, interested. Like Sakura was getting at, Sasori's chakra acted as an extension of himself, but he could not mould it with equal precision within himself. He could do it if he tried, but the speed in which he could do so was definitely too slow for him to consider it an option when in battle. The decision to punch someone could come in a split second when in combat, and the fact that Sakura could channel chakra into her limb in the following second it might take to get into a stance was fascinating.

The doors to the training grounds opened and Deidara let his entrance be known with a loud greeting. Sasori ignored the blond, who made a beeline towards Hidan to apparently pick up on a fight from earlier, which had been momentarily broken up by Konan. Sasori mentally patted himself on the back for retreating to his room for lunch and in turn avoiding the mess altogether.

Now that he thought about it, however, perhaps it was different for everyone? His affinity towards manipulating chakra outside made it difficult for him to do the same within his body. "I have difficulties moulding chakra within my body," he admitted. "Perhaps it's simply a matter of affinity."

Sakura thought this through. "Makes sense," she agreed.

An explosion cut through their conversation and Sasori glanced over his shoulder. Hidan and Deidara were now engaged in what he supposed was a spar, but really looked like the two were just trying to kill each other.

"How about your healing?" He asked curiously. Sakura's openness in talking about her abilities was a little surprising, but he was more than willing to go with it. "All your injuries were gone even though you were unconscious."

"I can't explain it well, mainly because I'm usually unconscious when it happens," Sakura said, smiling softly. "But when I'm awake, I channel my chakra to wherever I'm hurt, just like if I were trying to hit something. Orochimaru-sama once told me my chakra speeds up the natural healing of my body."

Sasori made a face at the pinkette's respectful title for Orochimaru. "I-"

There was another explosion, this one much louder than before. The ground seemed to shake and small pieces of debris showered down onto them. Sakura had jumped to her feet the moment the loud sound had gone off and she looked around, eyes wide.

"DANNA!" Deidara shouted from across the room. "LOOK OUT!"

Sasori's head snapped up, eyeing the ceiling. The room was reinforced to be able to withstand chakra based attacks, and he wondered why his blond friend was throwing around bombs that created cracks on such reinforced material. There was another cracking sound and Sasori tried to remember what was located on the floor above them because he was sure the ceiling was going to cave and he was also sure Nagato was not going to be pleased. He raised his hands, fingers spread and chakra flaring, ready to make sure none of the debris crushed any of them so that the two idiots could live to feel his wrath, when Sakura stepped up beside him.

Sasori blinked, caught off guard, as the ceiling came crashing down seconds later. The pinkette clenched her fist, pulled it back, and proceeded to shatter the biggest body of debris that came at them.

Silence followed. Sasori eyed the chakra suppressing collar, the _supposed to_ chakra suppressing collar, then turned to stare at Sakura, who stared back at him as though she hadn't just used chakra, which she shouldn't be able to use, to shatter a reinforced slab of rock, which should be incredibly resistant to chakra based force, into a bajillion tiny pieces.

Sakura blinked before she looked at her hands, then touched her collar. "Oh," she breathed. "Oops."

* * *

 _ **Darque: Uh, hi, sorry. Raven is a little occupied right now, so it'll be just me for a bit. The update took a little (MUCH) longer than I thought it would, sorry about that DX. I don't have this story entirely planned out just yet, but I have a few major scene things planned out and it's mostly just stringing them together.**_

 _ **Uh, yeah.**_

 **Read and Review!**


	14. Chapter 14

_**Chapter FOURTEEN**_

As Sasori had suspected, Nagato was less than pleased with the wreckage. Deidara and Hidan received the chewing out of their lives but it was not as funny as it was supposed to be, because he just knew him and Sakura would be next. Well, mostly Sakura, probably, but he was by her side a lot these days, he was sure he would be next to her when it was her turn.

He was sure part of the reason the idiots were getting scolded first was so that his leaders could gather their thoughts. After all, Sakura's chakra was supposed to be unusable. The fact that she had access to it this entire time was a major security problem.

Deidara and Hidan exited Nagato's office arguing, and Sasor had a feeling the scolding hadn't done much in the long run. As the two passed by, Deidara took a moment to turn away from the fuming silverette. "They're calling you, un."

Sakura curled in on herself even more. Sasori patted her on the head and she stood up from where she had been crouched at his feet.

"Yo!" Hidan said. Sakura jumped and Sasori felt himself scowling. Hidan ignored him. "You pack a real punch, huh. Why don't we-"

Deidara cut off whatever had probably been an invite to a spar by grabbing the man by the back of his collar and dragging him off.

"Ignore him," Sasori said. He held up a hand and Sakura took it after a moment. "Let's go?"

Nagato and Yahiko were talking among themselves when he opened the door. Konan smiled kindly. "Thank you for coming in," she said. "Why don't you sit?"

The two of them did as told, and Nagato looked up. He looked tired, and Sasori felt bad for the man.

"So you could use chakra," Nagato said. It was not a question, simply a statement.

Sakura bit her lip. "Yes."

The man gestured to the collar around her neck and nodded at Sasori. "Take that off of her," he instructed.

The chakra of the Akatsuki members had been registered as keys to the collar. Sasori sent his chakra through the collar and it obediently fell off her neck.

"Do you know how it works?" Nagato asked Sakura.

Sakura took the collar when Sasori held it out to her. "It suppresses chakra," she said. "Well, simply put, I guess."

Nagato leaned in. "Go on."

"It feels like a layer over my body," Sakura explained. "Chakra follows the command of your mind, and I take this collar stops the command line from being able to communicate with the rest of the body?"

Konan nodded. "That's correct."

Sasori thought over this. Moulding chakra required thought and concentration and controlling it within required a large amount of awareness of one's own body. But Sakura was fast enough with it that she could channel chakra to her fists, or any part of her body, in a moments notice. "Your control is so precise, your chakra so in tune with your body, that you don't send chakra to places in your body, you can gather the chakra where you choose." Nagato frowned as he cut in, but Sasori kept his eyes on Sakura. "Because of that, the interruption doesn't matter."

Nagato turned questioningly towards the pinkette and Sakura nodded in confirmation.

"That means you had access to chakra all this time," Konan noted.

"...Yes."

Nagato sighed. "I should ask why you didn't report it, but that would be a stupid question and a waste of time. I can largely guess why."

Sakura ducked her head.

"It isn't your fault, really. It was a major miscalculation on our part, an error that could have been truly dangerous had this continued to be unknown. Granted, a chakra user of your level that meets the slightly specific requirements to bypass the suppression may be difficult to come across, but it is still a weakness we should have been aware of. Perhaps it can be said that we were lucky you were the one wearing it."

"Why didn't you try to escape using it?" Yahiko asked.

"Because I had no reason to," Sakura said easily. "Besides, I could not have fought all of you."

Yahiko nodded slowly. "Why did you reveal yourself after hiding it for so long?"

Sakura blinked and Sasori found himself meeting her gaze when she glanced over at him the same time he did the same. She didn't look away like she usually did and instead she smiled a little. "There was a slab of the ceiling falling on us," she said. "It was instinct. I have never actually seen Sasori use his abilities, though I have been told he is more than capable of wielding chakra. It...It was instinct."

She had been protecting him. And herself, obviously, but she had had him in mind. Something warm bubbled within him.

Nagato was eyeing the pinkette intently and to Sakura's credit, she did not flinch away from his gaze like she usually did. "I think we can probably trust her not to turn her chakra against us," he said.

"I won't," Sakura said firmly. "You promised to take down Orochimaru-sama and save my friends."

"We will have to discuss this more in detail, but for now feel free to go back to your room." Nagato shot Sasori a glance. "Or Sasori's room, for the matter."

Sasori felt a little peeved, not because he actually thought Sakura would turn on him (he hoped not), but because Nagato had seen fit to release Sakura back into his room. Did everyone know? What was with the interest anyways?

Sakura bowed, taking this as a dismissal, and Sasori guessed he was free to go too.

Sakura stopped as she opened the door. "I like it here," she said quietly. "I don't hurt here."

Then the pinkette was out the door, and Sasori looked over his shoulder, briefly, to gauge the reaction of his leaders, before he hurried after the girl. He caught up to her in the corridor and fell in step beside her. He had a feeling the girl was mulling over her words and decided to see what it was she wanted to say.

Just as his patience was wearing thin, Sakura seemed to have gathered her thoughts. "Am I in trouble?"

Sasori thought over this for a second. Nagato hadn't _seemed_ angry, but if he were Nagato and he had scolded Deidara and Hidan as much as the man had, he'd honestly be too tired to stay angry at anyone else. Kakuzu would probably be extremely angry because of the financial strain of fixing the training room, but the target of his anger would probably be the numbers on the invoice.

"You don't have to worry," he told her.

They walked a little more in silence before this time he broke it. "Thank you," he said. "I didn't get a chance to say it yet."

Sakura tilted her head in his direction. "It's nothing," she said. "I have a feeling you could have dealt with it, but like I said I had no idea if you actually could."

"I could have," Sasori said. They arrived at his room and Sasori used chakra strings to open the door. "It would have been a little straining," he admitted. "It was quite a lot of debris."

"May I touch it?"

Sasori blinked. "What?"

Sakura raised her hands and wriggled her fingers. Sasori assumed she was talking about his chakra strings. "You can move objects with it, so it is solid?"

Sasori led the way into his room. He sent out chakra strings to straighten his bedsheets before he plopped down on his bed. Sakura sat down next to his without prompt. "Sure," he said. He carefully wrapped a chakra string around her wrist. "Not really _solid,_ but I guess close enough."

Chakra was a part of one's body, and those who had good control over it could essentially feel through it. Sasori could feel the pressure of touching something through his chakra strings and he could feel Sakura's fingers brushing over the glowing blue light. No one had ever requested to touch his chakra strings before and it felt extremely strange. He changed the nature of his chakra a little and watched Sakura's expression shift as she felt the strings warm up a little, then become more compact beneath her touch.

Sakura had a look of wonder in her eyes. "This is amazing," she said. "How is this able to move things? How will you have used this to stop the debris?"

Sasori thought of Sakura's love of books and the time she spent in the archives. He thought of her interest in plants for their properties. If things had been different, he had a feeling she would have been a scientist or a researcher. Perhaps a doctor, even. He clapped his hands together and drew strings between his fingers, like a net. He gripped them and tugged so that they were taut. "A bigger version of this," he said.

Sakura's eyes were shining and Sasori decided he could get away with it. "I don't know if you remember what Deidara said, but unlike most chakra users who have mutation related ability typically unique to the user, I have no such limitations. Some might call it a weakness, but I strongly disagree. You don't see Deidara warming a cup of tea or opening doors with his bombs."

Sakura smiled a little.

"From what I can tell, your chakra seems to lack a distinctive nature as well. Perhaps you can manage chakra strings."

"Do you think so?" Sakura looked at her own hands.

"Yes." Sasori held up his own so that she could see, and slowly gathered chakra at his fingertips. The tips began glowing and he extended the strings. "Try."

He had no idea what he was doing.

Sakura frowned at her own hands and her fingers slowly curled as she strained them.

"Don't try to force it," Sasori said. He wriggled his fingers and the chakra strings danced with the movement. "So really, all you need to do is-"

He was interrupted by a knock on the door. "Danna." That was Deidara's voice.

"Oh look," he murmured. "Perfect time to test it out. Open the door for the idiot, will you?"

Sakura frowned, face scrunched up in concentration.

"Danna?" Deidara called.

"Wait a second," he called back, and thankfully his blond friend did not try to open the door.

"Gather the chakra at your fingertips," he instructed. "Honestly, anywhere will do, but it'll probably be easier to get the hang of that way. Chakra strings act as an extension of your body, so mould the chakra into shape and you push it out."

Sakura's frown deepened and he could see her fingertips beginning to shake. "Relax," he breathed. He instinctively reached out to over one of his hands with his own and a sudden tingle shot up his limb.

Sakura jerked like she had felt it too, but she then simply closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay." She raised her hand again, the one he was holding onto, and he could feel the buildup of her chakra beneath her skin. He could also feel his own chakra thrumming, as though in response to Sakura's. "That's it," he said encouragingly.

The tips of Sakura's fingers began to glow blue. She frowned.

"You said when you punch something, the chakra built up within your fist is transferred into the object as force," he said thoughtfully. "I don't know, but maybe imagine you're punching the door with a finger from across the room?"

Sakura sent him a strange look and Sasori winced at his own terrible example, but the pinkette did nothing more than smile a little. She narrowed her eyes and, in the next second, blue chakra shot out from her finger and attached itself to the door handle. Sakura stared at it, then seemed to give it a little tug.

"Nice," he said. "Maybe work on the speed though, because if you aren't careful you might end up breaking whatever you're attaching the string to."

Sakura nodded. She flicked her finger and the doorknob turned, revealing an irritated looking Deidara.

"Geez, what took you so-" Deidara froze as he looked over them. "What are you doing, un?"

Sakura thoughtfully eyed the blond, then flicked him on the forehead with her chakra string.

"Sakura-chan?!"

Sasori smiled in amusement. "What, Deidara?"

Deidara was staring at Sakura's chakra string, but he shook his head at his question. "We got a mission, Danna."

Sasori nodded briefly. "Will there be a briefing?"

Deidara shook his head. "It's just patrol," he told him. "You and me, we leave tomorrow morning and should be back by evening."

"Okay." He hesitated. "Anything about Sakura?"

"Nagato said she can stay in your room. Itachi will be keeping an eye on her."

Sasori decided that was fine. The blond left, the door closing softly behind him, and he glanced over at Sakura. "You heard him."

"I did," Sakura replied. "I guess I'll just go through the archives some more."

Sasori nodded. "Sounds good," he said. "Depending on where I'm going, I'll bring you back a souvenir."

Sakura brightened and she nodded. "Okay."

* * *

 **Update!**

 **I, Darque, am in my spring break! Hurray! I've been drawing. And gaming. And writing. Life is fun. I haven't left my house in two weeks.**

 **Read and Review!**


	15. Chapter 15

_**Chapter FIFTEEN**_

"Hey, Sakura-chan, wanna spar?"

Ever since Sakura's chakra collar happening, the limitation

on her movements had unofficially been loosened. She still did not venture out, though Sasori wasn't sure if that was due to restrictions or if she simply did not want to, and she often visited the training grounds to mess around with Deidara.

Sasori followed to make sure nothing went wrong. Of course that was the only reason.

He and Deidara also began receiving more missions and patrols, and it was only then that Sasori realized just how much is workload had been lessened as Sakura adjusted to the hideout. Most of the members were willing to keep an eye on her while he was gone, and Sakura herself was more comfortable in the presence of those not him.

A large part of him was glad about that, and he ignored the tiny voice within him telling him that he might be a little jealous.

Because he wasn't.

* * *

The next step of Orochimaru's capture was slowly but surely planned. The intel gained from the Northern hideout had been fully analyzed and catalogued and there had been no retaliation from Orochimaru. here had been several raids on smaller bases and hideout they had managed to track down by other divisions within the nation.

However, after one massive operation, Orochimaru was sure to be cautious, and the wait was making everyone, not only Sasori, begin to feel impatient. He wasn't about to mess up their chance of capturing the snake, though, and he carried out his daily tasks and missions as diligently as he could.

Sasori sighed at the thought of his former partner. Up above the clouds, on the back of a flying bird and with the wind gently caressing his face, his thoughts often wandered to things he usually tried to not waste his time thinking of. The border he and Deidara had been assigned to was just as usual, and there was nothing to report.

They should be returning to the base soon.

Deidara was standing a little to his right, humming, arms crossed and looking straight as though he had conquered the world. Sasori had to admit, standing way above and looking down on the world did give one that feeling, but he was never going to tell Deidara that, especially because if he got too into the mood his blond partner started monologuing.

Sasori himself often just laid down. He never let his guard down enough to nap, but at least the wind felt nice enough for him to relax.

A while later, Sasori realized Deidara had stopped humming. He cracked an eye open, wondering if he had simply finished his tune.

"Hey Danna, do you see that?"

Sasori sighed and took a deep breath before he dragged himself up. "What?" He moved to stand beside his partner and scowled at the clouds obscuring their way.

"That...thing." Deidara pointed and Sasori squinted. He frowned.

"Why is there a house in the middle of a desert?"

"No idea, un. Is it even a house? It wasn't there the last time we flew over here."

"When was the last time again? Three weeks ago?" Sasori tried to remember if anyone had mentioned something like this, but nothing came to mind.

"Should we check it out?"

Sasori sighed. "Yeah."

Deidara changed the direction of his bird and they flew downwards. Sasori hopped off the moment it was safe to and he peered at the large structure standing a little away from them. "Is it made of sand?"

"Looks like it, un." Deidara landed behind him. He was tossing and catching a small ball of clay. "Should we explode it?"

Sasori fixed his partner with a blank look. "What if there's someone inside?"

Deidara shrugged. "Right."

The two of them did a quick circle around the structure and quickly realized that there was no entrance.

"This is so weird," Deidara muttered. "What is this thing?"

Sasori carefully placed a hand on one of the walls and channelled chakra through it. "It's solid," he said.

"Wow." Deidara held up his clay. "Should we explode it?"

Sasori frowned. "We should repo-" Suddenly, the ground beneath him seemed to shake. He quickly channelled chakra to his feet in order to keep his balance and grabbed Deidara, who didn't have such a skill, to keep him grounded as well.

"What's happening?" Deidara asked. The blond reached into his pouch and pulled out what Sasori recognized to be one of his birds. "Let's get out of here?"

Sasori nodded, but before his partner could transform his clay piece into a carrier the earth beneath them exploded. Both of them instinctively launched themselves into the air and Sasori raised his arms to his face to shield himself from the dust. Suddenly he felt a surge of killing intent and he saw something shoot out towards him. Before he could even react, the something grabbed him by the middle section and yanked him up into the air.

"Danna!"

Sasori could hear Deidara frantically calling his name, but it suddenly sounded far away. The _thing_ around him squeezed, and he found himself struggling to breathe. He was tugged forward rather harshly, and he soon found himself danging before a young redhead. A redhead with green eyes and sand floating around him.

Sasori opened his mouth, but the hold around his middle tightened even more. He could not concentrate enough to call upon his chakra. He _knew_ the sand should be manipulated through chakra, and he knew his control was good enough to disrupt the commanding flow. His lungs were screaming for air, and he struggled to even look up at his attacker.

Green eyes glared up at him and if Sasori hadn't been slowly dying, he would have been impressed with the thick eyeliner surrounding the boy's eyes. Now that he was closer, though, perhaps they were eyebags?

Finally, just as he thought he would lose consciousness, the hold loosened. Sasori took in a greedy gulp of air before he began to cough. He was roughly shaken, and he looked up with a glare. "I don't appreciate being manhandled," he wheezed out.

The boy's eyes flashed in rage, and Sasori wondered if he had met him before.

"Shut up," the boy snapped. "You have her! You _took her!_ He told me all about it!"

Sasori blinked, thrown off. "What? Who?" He glanced down nervously noting that he was hanging a good distance from the ground and that his attacker was perched on a platform of sand.

His reply seemed to displease the male before him, for the grip of the sand tightened once more. "Do not play dumb," he seethed. "Give. Her. Back."

Sasori could see flashes of white before his eyes. "No idea what you're talking about," he managed to get out.

The grip loosened once more and he hung limply from its hold. "Give her back," came the one-sided reply, but it was the sudden softness in his tone that made him lookup. He didn't get to fully look, though, because there was a loud noise just to his right and the sand holding him up exploded. Sasori felt himself falling, and he landed unceremoniously on a familiar white surface.

"Danna?" Deidara asked.

"Look out," he breathed out, and they swerved suddenly to the side to dodge a huge sandy hand that swiped at them.

"What is that?" Deidara demanded as they sped away.

"A dangerous man looking for his ex," Sasori said, finally managing to catch his breath. "No idea, really."

From behind them, they heard a monstrous roar that slowly diminished in volume the further they flew, but the distance did nothing to take away from the pain within.

* * *

Sasori and Deidara remained in the air for a while longer, wary of being followed, but soon after the redhead vanished in a swirl of sand. With no way of tracking him, they flew back to base soon after and reported in with Nagato the moment they returned.

Whoever the redhead had been, he was dangerous and was most probably a threat.

"Is there anything in the archives?" Konan asked. She and Yahiko had been present when they had barged in.

"Nothing specific," Nagato said, flipping through a file. "Red hair is pretty common, though there isn't much about sand manipulation."

"He either looked like he could use a good nights sleep or needed to tone down on the eyeliner," Deidara said. "He looked _insane_."

"He was looking for a girl?" Yahiko asked. "Is there any chance he's related to Orochimaru?"

Sasori mulled over his thoughts for a while. "There is a possibility he was waiting to ambush us," he said slowly. "With his abilities, I doubt making a massive sand structure would be much of a problem."

Deidara frowned. "You think he set up where he knew we'd be flying over? Did he know we'd come down to investigate?"

"Maybe." Sasori took a deep breath. "You think he was after Sakura?"

"We could ask her if she knows any sleep-deprived redheads who have a thing for makeup," Konan suggested.

"You talking about Danna, un?" Deidara asked.

* * *

They found Sakura sitting on Sasori's bed with a leaf in her mouth.

Sasori watched Deidara pause before he shot forward in panic. "Sakura-chan!" He exclaimed. "You can't just put everything in your mouth! Most of Danna's plants are poisonous!"

Sasori scoffed when Sakura eyed the blond before she pointedly swallowed the green. "If you were hungry, you could have gone to the kitchen," he said.

Sakura turned to him before she hopped off the bed and hurried over to his side. "Welcome back," she said quietly. "How was your mission?"

Sasori ruffled her hair, before nudging her to sit back down. "It was interesting," he said. "There's something we need to ask you."

Sakura sat down and looked expectantly up at him.

"On our way back, we were ambushed," Sasori said, carefully observing the pinkette's expression. "Our attacker was a red-haired male who controlled sand."

Sakura blinked, then slowly looked away from him. She wrapped an arm around her stomach, and he saw the way her hand came up to rub at her wrist.

"You know him?" He asked.

The girl hesitated before she nodded. "Gaara," she said.

"What?" Deidara asked.

"His name," Sakura elaborated. "His name is Gaara."

"One of Orochimaru's?" Sasori guessed, though they all probably knew the answer.

Sakura nodded and hesitated again. Sasori saw the way her grip on her own wrist tightened to the point he worried she would bruise herself. He could feel the pressure through their bond, so she must have been hurting a little. "Gaara and I, we are very close," she said. "He was beside me from the very beginning. He was my," Sakura swallowed hard, "my first-ever friend."

Sasori watched her forcefully release herself, then run her hand over her wrist again. She was nervous.

"Orochimaru-sama knew this," she said. "When I disobeyed, he didn't hurt me."

"He hurt him," Sasori said slowly.

Sakura nodded, not looking up. "Yes."

"And when he disobeyed, he hurt you?"

Sakura nodded again. "At the beginning, Gaara and I were assigned partners. We were sent out on missions together. We were one of Orochimaru's best."

"You-both of you are so _strong_ though," Deidara said in disbelief, and Sasori thought of the Gaara they had momentarily faced off against. "Why didn't you try to escape?"

"Because by the time we realized, Orochimaru long knew. We were each other's chain."

"He seemed to think we _took_ you," Sasori said.

"I don't know why," Sakura replied. "He was probably told so to turn him against you."

"He was _insane,_ un."

Sasori glared at his partner but Sakura did nothing more than wince. "Gaara cannot control himself," she told them. "There were quite a lot of people like that. The chakra they wield is so overwhelmingly powerful and no one helped them through the process of learning how to control it."

"More powerful than you?"

Sakura looked thoughtful. "I was one of Orochimaru's strongest, but Gaara...Gaara is an army by himself. "

Sasori nodded. "Will we have to worry about him coming after us?"

Sakura looked torn, and Sasori felt torn himself. Sakura had a companion when she was with Orochimaru. That thought itself put him at ease.

"If I can talk to him-" Sakura cut herself off. She took a deep breath, then tried again. "If I can just _talk to him._ "

Deidara looked over the girl in worry, then turned to him. Sasori placed a hand on Sakura's head and gently ruffled her hair. "I'm going to report this, okay?"

He would have to regardless of Sakura's consent, but he felt himself relax when Sakura nodded without much hesitation.

* * *

 **I like redheads.**

 **Just a notice that 'The Gift of Sight' is currently going through a rewrite, so if you haven't yet, do check it out!**

 **Here's a summary of it for those interested:**

 **Morino Ibiki is recognized if not by his name, then by his face. His scars disturb many and children run at the sight, so when he meets a pink haired girl he doesn't know what to do with her, especially when she takes an instant liking to him. Maybe it's because she is of a clan that gave up sight for chakra vision, but sometimes, only those who cannot see can truly understand.**

 **Raven is still MIA so it's just me still. Catch me on Tumblr at Darquedeath4444! Or discord /dNYU2kV**

 **Read and Review!**


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